EP1921569B1 - Etikettlabel erzeugende Vorrichtung - Google Patents

Etikettlabel erzeugende Vorrichtung Download PDF

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Publication number
EP1921569B1
EP1921569B1 EP08000371A EP08000371A EP1921569B1 EP 1921569 B1 EP1921569 B1 EP 1921569B1 EP 08000371 A EP08000371 A EP 08000371A EP 08000371 A EP08000371 A EP 08000371A EP 1921569 B1 EP1921569 B1 EP 1921569B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
tag
print
label
tape
information
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Active
Application number
EP08000371A
Other languages
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP1921569A1 (de
Inventor
Saturo Moriyama
Koshiro Yamaguchi
Mitsugi Tanaka
Yasuhisa Ichikawa
Yasuhiro Iriyama
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Brother Industries Ltd
Original Assignee
Brother Industries Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from JP2006111246A external-priority patent/JP4911342B2/ja
Priority claimed from JP2006216019A external-priority patent/JP2008040897A/ja
Application filed by Brother Industries Ltd filed Critical Brother Industries Ltd
Publication of EP1921569A1 publication Critical patent/EP1921569A1/de
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP1921569B1 publication Critical patent/EP1921569B1/de
Active legal-status Critical Current
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical

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Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06K—GRAPHICAL DATA READING; PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS
    • G06K7/00—Methods or arrangements for sensing record carriers, e.g. for reading patterns
    • G06K7/10—Methods or arrangements for sensing record carriers, e.g. for reading patterns by electromagnetic radiation, e.g. optical sensing; by corpuscular radiation
    • G06K7/10009—Methods or arrangements for sensing record carriers, e.g. for reading patterns by electromagnetic radiation, e.g. optical sensing; by corpuscular radiation sensing by radiation using wavelengths larger than 0.1 mm, e.g. radio-waves or microwaves
    • G06K7/10316—Methods or arrangements for sensing record carriers, e.g. for reading patterns by electromagnetic radiation, e.g. optical sensing; by corpuscular radiation sensing by radiation using wavelengths larger than 0.1 mm, e.g. radio-waves or microwaves using at least one antenna particularly designed for interrogating the wireless record carriers
    • G06K7/10326—Methods or arrangements for sensing record carriers, e.g. for reading patterns by electromagnetic radiation, e.g. optical sensing; by corpuscular radiation sensing by radiation using wavelengths larger than 0.1 mm, e.g. radio-waves or microwaves using at least one antenna particularly designed for interrogating the wireless record carriers the antenna being of the very-near field type, e.g. capacitive
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J3/00—Typewriters or selective printing or marking mechanisms characterised by the purpose for which they are constructed
    • B41J3/407—Typewriters or selective printing or marking mechanisms characterised by the purpose for which they are constructed for marking on special material
    • B41J3/4075—Tape printers; Label printers
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J3/00—Typewriters or selective printing or marking mechanisms characterised by the purpose for which they are constructed
    • B41J3/44—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms having dual functions or combined with, or coupled to, apparatus performing other functions
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J3/00—Typewriters or selective printing or marking mechanisms characterised by the purpose for which they are constructed
    • B41J3/44—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms having dual functions or combined with, or coupled to, apparatus performing other functions
    • B41J3/50—Mechanisms producing characters by printing and also producing a record by other means, e.g. printer combined with RFID writer
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06K—GRAPHICAL DATA READING; PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS
    • G06K17/00—Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations
    • G06K17/0003—Automatic card files incorporating selecting, conveying and possibly reading and/or writing operations
    • G06K17/0009—Automatic card files incorporating selecting, conveying and possibly reading and/or writing operations with sequential access selection of a record carrier from the card-file, e.g. relative movement between selecting device and card-file
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06K—GRAPHICAL DATA READING; PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS
    • G06K17/00—Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations
    • G06K17/0022—Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations arrangements or provisious for transferring data to distant stations, e.g. from a sensing device
    • G06K17/0025—Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations arrangements or provisious for transferring data to distant stations, e.g. from a sensing device the arrangement consisting of a wireless interrogation device in combination with a device for optically marking the record carrier

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a tag-label producing device for producing an RFID label equipped with an RFID circuit element for performing wireless communication of information with the outside.
  • An RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) system which performs, by means of a reader (reading device)/writer (writing device), transmission/reception of information in a non-contact manner (by an electromagnetic coupling method, electromagnetic induction method, or electromagnetic radiation method or the like using a coil) with respect to an RFID circuit element that stores information.
  • an RFID circuit element provided in a label-like RFID tag is equipped with an IC circuit part for storing predetermined RFID tag information, and an antenna connected to this IC circuit part to transmit/receive information.
  • the reader/writer can make access (reading/writing of information) to the RFID tag information of the IC circuit part even in such a case where the RFID tag is soiled or the RFID tag is arranged at a position where it cannot be seen, such an RFID system has been put into practical use in a variety of fields such as merchandise management and inspection processes.
  • Such an RFID tag is usually formed with RFID circuit elements provided on a label-like material.
  • This tag label is often affixed to a target item or the like for the purpose of classification/organization of various documents/items, for example. Further, at this time, if, separately from tag information stored in the tag, information related to the RFID tag information is printed on a label in advance, the above-mentioned related information can be viewed from the user side, which may prove convenient in many situations. Accordingly, in the related art, a tag-label producing device for producing an RFID label from such a point of view has been already proposed (see, for example, JP,A,2004-82432 and JP,A,2003-208573 ) .
  • a label equipped with an RFID circuit element (RF-ID element) is affixed to a tape-like tag medium (label sheet), and this is formed into a roll; after performing printing on the surface of the label by printing means (recording head) while paying out and feeding the tag medium from this roll, predetermined information writing is performed in the above-mentioned feeding state by transmitting information to the RFID circuit element from communication means (communication antenna) on the device side, thereby successively producing RFID labels with print.
  • a tag medium is paid out from a roll unit equipped with a roll (roll sheet) having wound thereon the tag medium (continuous label sheet) on which RFID circuit elements (antennas and IC chips) are arranged longitudinally at substantially equal internals; after performing predetermined printing onto a predetermined position of that tag medium by printing means, transmission/reception of information is performed by communication means (RF-ID communication antenna) with respect to the RFID circuit elements equipped in the tag medium, thereby successively producing RFID labels with print.
  • document JP 2005-141407 A describes a tape for radio tag and the printing device designed therefore according to the preamble of append claim 1.
  • Document JP 2004-058362 A shows a recorder which has a means for detecting the number of remaining sheets of recordable recording media based on information read out from a radio communication device, which is included in a recording medium.
  • Document JP 2002-293314 A shows a label printer which is able to detect an identification mark, and which then determines the number of residually remaining sheets by subtracting the present label from the total numberof sheets.
  • predetermined printing is always performed before communication is performed, the same form of printing is performed on the RFID label all the time irrespective of the success/failure of the communication.
  • the communication by the antenna and the printing by the printing means are coordinated in such a way that when it is possible or better to reflect the communication result on the form of printing, the communication result is reflected on the printing and recognized by the operator, this should enhance the convenience of the operator.
  • no particular consideration has been given in this regard.
  • a first object of the present invention is to provide a tag-label producing device that can achieve enhanced convenience by performing processing on the basis of movement-related information of a tag medium.
  • a second object of the present invention is to provide a tag-label producing device that can enhance the convenience of the operator by performing finely coordinated control between the printing operation and the communication operation.
  • a third object of the present invention is to provide a tag-label producing device that enables information related to the remaining number of RFID circuit elements to be reliably acquired during the RFID label production, thereby making it possible to enhance the convenience of the operator.
  • a tag-label producing device including: communication that performs transmission/reception of information in a non-contact manner with respect to an RFID circuit element provided in a tag medium having the RFID circuit element arranged therein, the RFID circuit element including an IC circuit part for storing information and an antenna for performing transmission/reception of information; relative moving means that imparts relative movement between the communication means and the tag medium; related-information processing means that performs predetermined processing relating to tag-medium-movement-related information based on the relative movement produced by the relative moving means; and control signal outputting means that outputs a control signal according to a result of processing by the related-information processing means.
  • the control signal outputting means outputs a control signal in accordance with the result of this determination, so that the control signal outputting means can, in accordance with the state at the time of arrival at the information transmission/reception position, perform switch-control of the subsequent operations, thereby allowing finely coordinated control to be easily and quickly effected. As a result, it is possible to enhance the convenience of the operator.
  • number-count-related information stored in the IC circuit part of the RFID circuit element and indicating the number of RFID circuit element inside the tag-medium accommodating member can be acquired via the communication means.
  • the control signal outputting means can output a display control signal for displaying the corresponding number-count information. Accordingly, as compared with the case of performing tag label production under a state where it is unknown how many more RFID circuit elements remain, the convenience of the operator can be enhanced.
  • the tag medium upon installing the tag-medium accommodating member on the accommodating-member installation holder, the tag medium is supplied from the tag-medium accommodating member as it is fed by the feeding means, and predetermined information transmission/reception is performed with respect to the RFID circuit element equipped in the tag medium via the communication means, thereby producing a tag label.
  • number-count-related information is stored in the IC circuit part of the RFID circuit element. This number-count-related information is acquired by the information acquisition means via the communication means, and the corresponding number-count information is reliably stored into the storage means.
  • a display control signal relating to this stored number-count information is output from the display control signal outputting means, thereby allowing the above-mentioned number count to be displayed on the display means and recognized by the operator with reliability. Accordingly, as compared with the case of performing tag label production in the state where it is unknown how many RFID circuit elements remain, the convenience of the operator can be enhanced.
  • the tag-label producing device further includes update processing means that increases or decreases a value of the number-count information, which is stored in the storage means, by 1 each time production of one the tag label is completed.
  • the number-count information stored into the storage means on the basis of the number-count information acquired from the IC circuit part of the RFID circuit element is decreased or increased by 1 by the update processing means each time one tag label is produced. Accordingly, the number (the remaining-number or usage number) of RFID circuit elements in the tag-medium accommodating member, which changes (decreases or increases) as tag labels are produced, can be reliably grasped and displayed on the display means.
  • the tag-label producing device further includes a second coordinative control means that, after the number-count information is stored into the storage means on the basis of the number-count-related information acquired by the information acquisition means, coordinately controls the feeding means, the communication means, and the information acquisition means so as to perform the tag label production without acquiring the number-count-related information by the information acquisition means.
  • Number-count information is stored into the storage means on the basis of the number-count-related information acquired from the IC circuit part of the RFID circuit element by the information acquisition means, and thereafter the number-count information is decreased or increased by 1 each time one tag label is produced, thereby making it unnecessary to acquire the number-count information from the IC circuit part again.
  • unnecessary wireless communication procedure can be omitted.
  • the time required for the label production is reduced, thereby making it possible to enhance the efficiency of production processing.
  • the 21st invention is characterized in that in the above-mentioned 19th invention or 20th invention, the display control signal outputting means generates and outputs a display control signal for displaying a value of the number-count information updated by the update processing means.
  • the value of number-count information that increases or decreases upon each tag label production can be displayed on the display means and reliably recognized by the operator.
  • the tag-label producing device further includes initialization processing means that initializes, at a predetermined timing after the tag label production, a value of the number-count information stored in the storage means at that time.
  • the value of the number-count information previously stored in the storage means is not retained but initialized (cleared), thereby making it possible to prevent an erroneous display of the number-count information or the like from being made at the time of next tag label production.
  • the initialization processing means performs initialization of the number-count information when, as the predetermined timing, at least one of the following conditions are met: the tag-medium accommodating member has been detached from the accommodating-member installation holder; a cover that covers the accommodating-member installation holder has been opened; and a device power source has been turned on or off.
  • the value of the number-count information that has been stored in the storage means is initialized, thereby making it possible to reliably prevent an erroneous display of the number-count information or the like from being made at the time of next tag label production.
  • the accommodating-member installation holder is a cartridge holder onto which an RFID circuit element cartridge as the tag-medium accommodating member accommodating a tag tape roll can be detachably mounted, the tag tape roll having wound thereon a tag tape as the tag medium in which a plurality of the RFID circuit elements are successively arranged.
  • the number-count information can be reliably recognized by the operator, thereby making it possible to enhance the convenience of the operator.
  • the cartridge holder allows the RFID circuit element cartridge of a laminate type to be attached and detached as the RFID circuit element cartridge to and from the cartridge holder, the RFID circuit element cartridge of a laminate type accommodating the tag tape roll, and a print-receiving tape roll around which a print-receiving tape to be bonded onto the tag tape is wound;
  • the feeding means feeds the tag tape and the print-receiving tape;
  • the tag-label producing device further includes printing means that performs predetermined printing on the print-receiving tape.
  • the print-receiving tape which is paid out from the print-receiving tape roll and on which predetermined printing has been performed by the printing means, is bonded onto the above-mentioned tag tape to thereby produce a tag label
  • the number-count information can be reliably recognized by the operator, thereby making it possible to enhance the convenience of the operator.
  • a tag-label producing device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
  • the present invention is applied to an RFID label manufacturing system.
  • Fig. 1 is a system diagram showing an RFID tag manufacturing system equipped with a tag-label producing device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
  • a tag-label producing device 1 is connected to a route server RS, a plurality of information servers IS, a terminal 118a, and a general purpose computer 118b via a wired or wireless communication line NW.
  • the terminal 118a and the general purpose computer 118b will be generically referred to simply as "PC 118" as appropriate.
  • the information server IS provided with a database (not shown) in which, for example, employee information, merchandise information, customer information, and so on are registered.
  • Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the overall construction of the above-mentioned tag-label producing device 1.
  • the tag-label producing device 1 is connected to the PC 118 and produces an RFID label with a desired print on the basis of operation from the PC 118.
  • the tag-label producing device 1 includes a main body 2, and an open/close cover 3 (cover) provided to the upper surface of the main body 2 so as to freely open and close.
  • the main body 2 is located on the forward side (the left forward side in Fig. 2 ), and includes a side wall 10 equipped with a label discharge port 11 for discharging an RFID label T (details of which will be described later) produced inside the main body 2, and a side cover 12 that is provided in the portion of the side wall 10 below the label discharge port 11 and whose lower end is rotatably supported in place.
  • a side wall 10 equipped with a label discharge port 11 for discharging an RFID label T (details of which will be described later) produced inside the main body 2
  • a side cover 12 that is provided in the portion of the side wall 10 below the label discharge port 11 and whose lower end is rotatably supported in place.
  • the side cover 12 includes a pressing portion 13.
  • the side cover 12 opens forward by pressing the pressing portion 13 from above.
  • a power supply button 14 for turning on/off the power supply of the tag-label producing device 1 is provided in the portion of the side wall 10 below an open/close button 4.
  • a cutter driving button 16 for driving a cutting mechanism 15 (see Fig. 3 that will be described later) disposed inside the main body 2 through manual operation by the user.
  • the open/close cover 3 is rotatably pivoted on the end of the main body 2 on the right rear side in Fig. 2 , and always urged in the opening direction via an urging member such as a spring.
  • an urging member such as a spring.
  • Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the construction of an internal unit 20 of the tag-label producing device 1 (however, a loop antenna LC that will be described later is omitted).
  • the internal unit 20 generally includes a cartridge holder 6 (accommodating-member installation holder) accommodating a cartridge (RFID circuit element cartridge; tag-medium accommodating member) 7, a printing mechanism 21 equipped with a print head (thermal head) 23, the cutting mechanism 15, a half-cut unit 35 (see Fig. 8 that will be described later), and a label discharge mechanism 22 for discharging the produced RFID label T (see Fig. 19 that will be described later) from the label discharge port 11 (see Fig. 2 ).
  • Fig. 4 is a plan view showing the construction of the internal unit 20 shown in Fig. 3
  • Fig. 5 is an enlarged plan view schematically showing the detailed construction of the cartridge 7.
  • the cartridge holder 6 accommodates the cartridge 7 so that the orientation in the width direction of the tag label tape 109 with print discharged from the label discharge port 11 becomes perpendicular.
  • the cartridge 7 has a housing 7A, a first roll 102 arranged inside the housing 7A and around which a base tape 101 (tag tape; tag medium) having a band-like shape is wound, a second roll 104 (print-receiving tape roll) around which a transparent cover film 103 (print-receiving tape; print-receiving medium) of substantially the same width as the base tape 101 is wound, a ribbon-supply-side roll 111 for paying out an ink ribbon 105 (thermal transfer ribbon; unnecessary when the print-receiving tape used is a thermal tape), a ribbon take-up roller 106 for taking up the ink ribbon 105 after printing, a tape feed roller 27 rotatably supported near a tape discharging portion 30 of the cartridge 7, and a guide roller 112.
  • the tape feed roller 27 which also functions as a pressure roller, presses the base tape 101 and the cover film 103 into adhesion with each other to thereby prepare the tag label tape 109 with print, and feeds the tag label tape 109 with print in the direction indicated by the arrow A.
  • the first roll 102 has the base tape 101 wound around a reel member 102a.
  • the base tape 101 has a plurality of RFID circuit elements To successively formed at predetermined equal intervals in the longitudinal direction thereof.
  • the base tape 101 is of a four-layer structure in this example (see the partially enlarged view in Fig. 5 ).
  • the base tape 101 includes an adhesive layer 101a made of a suitable adhesive material, a colored base film 101b (base layer; antenna base layer) made of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or the like, an adhesive layer 101c (adhesive layer) made of a suitable adhesive material, and a separation sheet 101d (separation material layer), which are laminated in the stated order from the side wound on the inner side (the right side in Fig. 5 ) toward the side opposite thereto (the left side in Fig. 5 ).
  • a loop antenna 152 (tag-side loop antenna) that is formed in a loop coil-like configuration and performs transmission/reception of information is provided integrally in this example, with an IC circuit part 151 for storing information being formed so as to connect to the loop antenna 152.
  • IC circuit part 151 for storing information being formed so as to connect to the loop antenna 152.
  • the above-mentioned adhesive layer 101a for adhering the cover film 103 later is formed on the front side (the right side in Fig. 5 ) of the base film 101b. Further, on the back side (the left side in Fig. 5 ) of the base film 101b, the separation sheet 101d is adhered onto the base film 101b by means of the above-mentioned adhesive layer 101c provided so as to contain the RFID circuit element To.
  • the separation sheet 101d is peeled off when affixing the finally completed RFID label T having a label-shaped configuration onto a predetermined item or the like, thus allowing adhesion of the RFID label T onto the item or the like by means of the adhesive layer 101c.
  • Predetermined release processing (not shown) is performed on both sides (the adhesive layer 101c side and the side opposite thereto) of the separation sheet 101d so as to prevent firm adhesion of (facilitate separation of) the adhesive layer 101c or the adhesive layer 101a that is adjacent to the separation sheet 101d in the state with the base tape 101 being wound into the first roll 102.
  • a predetermined identifier for feed control (which in this example is a black-painted identifier.
  • this may also be a hole bored by laser machining or the like so as to substantially penetrate the base tape 101, or the like. See Fig. 19C that will be described later) PM is provided at a predetermined position corresponding to each RFID circuit element To (which in this example is a position located on the side further forward with respect to the distal end of the antenna 152 located on the forward side in the feed direction).
  • an identifier PH (end mark) may be provided continuous to the identifier PM as appropriate.
  • the end mark PH is formed by a hole bored by punching using a Thompson or Victoria type die-cutter, laser machining, or the like so as to substantially penetrate the base tape 101.
  • the cover film 103 In the state with the cover film 103 bonded onto the base tape 101, the hole as the end mark PH is covered by the cover film 103 that is transparent on the antenna base layer 101b side.
  • the second roll 104 has the cover film 103 wound around a reel member 104a.
  • the ink ribbon 105 driven by the ribbon-supply-side roll 111, which is arranged on the back surface side (that is, the side where the cover film 103 is adhered onto the base tape 101) of the cover film 103, and the ribbon take-up roller 106 is pressed by the print head 23 into abutment with the back surface of the cover film 103.
  • the ribbon take-up roller 106 and the tape feed roller 27 are rotationally driven in synchronization with a ribbon take-up roller drive shaft 107 and a tape-feed-roller drive shaft 108 as the drive force of a feed motor 119 (see Fig. 15 that will be described later) that is, for example, a pulse motor provided outside the cartridge 7 is transmitted to the ribbon take-up roller drive shaft 107 and the tape-feed-roller drive shaft 108 via a gear mechanism (not shown), respectively.
  • the print head 23 equipped with a large number of heater elements is mounted to a head mounting portion 24 provided upright to the cartridge holder 6, and is arranged on the upstream side of the tape feed roller 27 with respect to the feed direction of the cover film 103.
  • a roller holder 25 is rotatably pivoted by means of a support shaft 29 on the portion of the cartridge holder 6 located forward of the cartridge 7 (the lower side in Fig. 4 ), and can be switched by means of a switching mechanism between a printing position (abutting position; see Fig. 4 ) and a release position (separated position).
  • a platen roller 26 and a tape pressure-contact roller 28 are rotatably disposed in the roller holder 25.
  • the base tape 101 paid out from the first roll 102 is supplied to the tape feed roller 27.
  • the cover film 103 paid out from the second roll 104 the ink ribbon 105 driven by the ribbon-supply-side roll 111, which is arranged on the back surface side (that is, the side where the cover film 103 is adhered onto the base tape 101) of the cover film 103, and the ribbon take-up roller 106 is pressed by the print head 23 into abutment with the back surface of the cover film 103.
  • the tape-feed-roller drive shaft 108 As the tape-feed-roller drive shaft 108 is driven, the tape feed roller 27, the pressure roller 28, and the platen roller 26 rotate, and the base tape 101 is paid out from the first roll 102 and supplied to the tape feed roller 27 as described above.
  • the cover film 103 is paid out from the second roll 104, and the plurality of heater elements of the print head 23 are energized by a print-head drive circuit 120 (see Fig. 15 that will be described later).
  • a label print R (see Fig. 18 that will be described later), which corresponds to the information stored in the RFID circuit elements To on the base tape 101 onto which the cover film 103 is to be bonded, is formed on the back surface of the cover film 103.
  • the base tape 101 and the cover film 103 on which printing has been performed as described above are adhered and integrated together by means of the tape feed roller 27 and the pressure roller 28, thus forming the tag label tape 109 with print, which is carried to the outside of the cartridge 7 by the tape discharging portion 30.
  • the ink ribbon 105 for which printing on the cover film 103 has been finished is taken up on the ribbon take-up roller 106 due to the drive of the ribbon take-up roller drive shaft 107.
  • a tape specific indication portion 8 which indicates, for example, the width, color, and the like of the base tape 101 incorporated in the cartridge 7, is provided in the upper surface of the housing 7A of the cartridge 7.
  • the above-mentioned see-through window 5 and the tape specific indication portion 8 are opposed to each other, thus allowing the tape specific indication portion 8 to be viewed from the outside of the main body 2 through the transparent cover of the see-through window 5.
  • This allows the kind or the like of the cartridge 7 loaded on the cartridge holder 6 to be readily identified visually from the outside of the main body 2 through the see-through window 5.
  • the internal unit 20 includes the cutting mechanism 15 and the label discharge mechanism 22.
  • the internal unit 20 further includes a loop antenna LC for performing reading or writing of information via wireless communication with respect to the RFID circuit element To equipped in the base tape 101 (the tag label tape with print after the bonding; the same applies hereinafter).
  • the tag label tape 109 with print is cut by the cutting mechanism 15 automatically or by operating the cutter driving button 16 (see Fig. 2 ), thereby producing the RFID label T.
  • This RFID label T is then further discharged by the label discharge mechanism 22 from the label discharge port 11 formed in the side wall 10 (see Fig. 2 ).
  • the cutting mechanism 15 includes a stationary blade 40, a movable blade 41 for performing cutting operation together with the stationary blade 40, a cutter helical gear 42 coupled to the movable blade 41, and a cutter motor 43 coupled to the cutter helical gear 42 through a gear train.
  • the label discharge mechanism 22 is disposed near the label discharge port 11 provided in the side wall 10 of the main body 2, and functions for forcibly discharging from the label discharge port 11 the tag label tape 109 with print that has been cut by the cutting mechanism 15 (in other words, the RFID label T; the same applies hereinafter).
  • the label discharge mechanism 22 includes a drive roller 51, a pressing roller 52 opposed to the drive roller 51 with the tag label tape 109 with print therebetween, a pressing actuation mechanism portion 53 that is actuated so as to press the pressing roller 52 against the tag label tape 109 with print or to release the pressing, and a discharge drive mechanism portion 54 that operates in synchronization with the pressing release operation of the pressing actuation mechanism portion 53 to rotate the drive roller 51 so that the tag label tape 109 with print is discharged by the drive roller 51.
  • first guide walls 55, 56 and second guide walls 63, 64 for guiding the tag label tape 109 with print toward the label discharge port 11 are provided on the inner side of the label discharge port 11 (see Fig. 4 ).
  • the first guide walls 55, 56 and the second guide walls 63, 64 are respectively formed integrally, and are arranged so as to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance at the discharge position of the tag label tape 109 with print that has been cut by the stationary blade 40 and the movable blade 41.
  • the label discharge mechanism 22 has a mark sensor 127 (details of which will be described later) that is composed of a known light-emitting diode and a phototransistor and detects the identifier PM provided to the separation sheet 101d of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • a mark sensor 127 (details of which will be described later) that is composed of a known light-emitting diode and a phototransistor and detects the identifier PM provided to the separation sheet 101d of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • the pressing actuation mechanism portion 53 includes a roller supporting holder 57, a roller supporting portion 58 that is mounted to the roller supporting holder 57 and retains the pressing roller 52 at its distal end portion, a holder supporting portion 59 that rotatably supports the roller supporting holder 57, a cam 60 that operates in synchronization with the cutting mechanism 15 to drive the pressing actuation mechanism portion 53, and an urging spring 61.
  • the roller supporting portion 58 is rotatably supported in place so as to sandwich the pressing roller 52 from above and below.
  • the roller supporting holder 57 is pivoted counterclockwise (the arrow 71 direction in Fig. 3 ) about the holder supporting shaft 59 through the cam 60, the pressing roller 52 is pressed against the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • the holder supporting shaft 59 is pivoted in the direction opposite to the above-mentioned direction due to the urging spring 61, thus releasing the pressing roller 52 from the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • the discharge drive mechanism portion 54 is composed of a tape discharging motor 65 and a gear train 66. After the tag label tape 109 with print is pressed against the drive roller 51 by the pressing roller 52, the tape discharging motor 65 is driven and the drive roller 51 is rotated in the direction for discharging the tag label tape 109 with print, whereby the tag label tape 109 with print is forcibly discharged in the discharging direction.
  • Fig. 6 is a conceptual diagram as seen in the direction of the arrow D of Fig. 5 , showing the conceptual structure of the RFID circuit element To equipped in the base tape 101 paid out from the first roll 102.
  • the RFID circuit element To is composed of the loop antenna 152 that is formed in a loop coil-like configuration and performs transmission/reception of information, and an IC circuit part 151 that is connected to the loop antenna 152 and stores information.
  • the above-mentioned identifier PM is provided in an associated manner at a predetermined distance from the RFID circuit element To with respect to the feed direction.
  • Fig. 7A is a partially extracted perspective view showing the detailed construction of the main portion of the label discharge mechanism 22.
  • Fig. 7B is a drawing conceptually showing the structure of the mark sensor 127 shown in Fig. 7A .
  • the pressing roller 52 is provided so as to be movable. with respect to the feed path of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • the first guide walls 55, 56 are cutout at their vertically midway portions, with the drive roller 51 being provided to the first guide wall 55 so as to face the discharge position of the tag label tape 109 with print from the cutout portion.
  • the drive roller 51 has a roller cutout portion 51A formed by a concentric groove on its upper surface.
  • the pressing roller 52 is supported on the roller supporting portion 58 of the pressing actuation mechanism portion 53 so as to face the discharge position of the tag label tape 109 with print from the cutout portion.
  • Fig. 7A shows the case when the pressing roller 52 is in the release position.
  • the roller supporting portion 58 of the pressing actuation mechanism portion 53 moves in the direction toward the feed path of the tag label tape 109 with print, and the pressing roller 52 is inserted into the cutout portion of the first guide wall 56 so as to approach the feed path of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • the loop antenna LC (whose arranging position is conceptually shown in Fig. 7A ) is arranged near the pressing roller 52 with the pressing roller 52 being positioned at the center in the radial direction thereof (on the inner side in the radial direction; more specifically, on the coil center axis).
  • Access to (reading of information from or writing of information to) the RFID circuit element To equipped in the tag label tape 109 with print is performed by magnetic induction (electromagnetic induction, magnetic coupling, and other such non-contact induction method performed via an electromagnetic field).
  • the loop antenna LC is arranged so that the pressing roller 52 is positioned at the center in the radial direction of the loop antenna LC, this should not be construed restrictively; the loop antenna LC may be arranged so that the pressing roller 52 is positioned on the outer side in the radial direction. Further, the loop antenna LC may be arranged not on the pressing roller side 52 with respect to the feed path of the tag label tape 109 with print but on the drive roller 51 side.
  • the mark sensor 127 which can detect the identifier PM (see Fig. 6 or the like) provided to the separation sheet 101d of the tag label tape 109 with print (base tape 101) in correspondence with the position of each RFID circuit element, is provided on the upstream side of the drive roller 51 with respect to the feed direction (in other words, between a half-cutter 34 that will be described later and the loop antenna LC).
  • the mark sensor 127 is, for example, a known reflection-type photoelectric sensor composed of a light projector 127a consisting of a light-emitting diode, and a light receiver 127b consisting of a phototransistor. If the above-mentioned black-painted identifier PM is present between the light projector 127a and the light receiver 127b, the light from the light projector 127a is absorbed by the identifier PM and the amount of light that returns to the light receiver 127b decreases, so the control output from the light receiver 127b is inverted, whereby the presence of the identifier PM is detected.
  • the first guide wall 56 opposed to the mark sensor 127 is formed such that the surface of the first guide wall 56 is of a color that does not reflect the light from the light projector or is inclined so that the light receiver does not receive the reflection light.
  • Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the outward appearance of the internal unit 20 with the label discharge mechanism 22 removed from the construction shown in Fig. 3 .
  • the cutter helical gear 42 is provided with a boss 50 in the form of a projection, and the boss 50 is inserted into an elongated hole 49 of the movable blade 41 (see also Fig. 11 or 9 that will be described later). Further, on the downstream side of the stationary blade 40 and the movable blade 41 along the tape discharge direction, the half-cut unit 35 is mounted so as to be located between the stationary blade 40 and the movable blade 41, and the first guide walls 55, 56 (see Fig. 4 ).
  • the half-cut unit 35 is composed of a pad 38 arranged in alightment with the stationary blade 40, the half-cutter 34 opposed to the pad 38 and arranged on the movable blade 41 side, a first guide portion 36 arranged in alignment with the stationary blade 40 between the stationary blade 40 and the pad 38, and a second guide portion 37 opposed to the first guide portion 36 and arranged in alignment with the movable blade 41 (see also Fig. 11 that will be described later).
  • the first guide portion 36 and the second guide portion 37 are formed integrally, and mounted to a side plate 44 (see Fig. 4 ) together with the stationary blade 40 by means ot a guide fixing portion 36A provided at a position corresponding to a fixing hole 40A of the stationary blade 40.
  • a half-cutter motor 129 (not shown; see Fig. 15 that will be described later) is provided to pivot the half-cutter 34 about a predetermined pivot point (not shown).
  • a crank member equipped with a pin is connected to the half-cutter motor 129 via a gear train, and the pin of the crank member is engaged with an elongated hole bored in the half-cutter 34 so that when the half-cutter motor 129 rotates, the half-cutter 34 rotates due to the pin of the crank member.
  • the half-cutter 34 moves in a direction crossing the feed direction of the tag label tape 109 with print (substantially orthogonal direction in this example). That is, as the motor 129 rotates in forward, the half-cutte'r 34 is pivoted in the cutting direction with respect to the tag label tape 109 with print into a regulating position for regulating the feed path of the tag label tape 109 with print (to be within a predetermined range)(in this case, the half-cutter 34 abuts the tape 109), and as the motor 129 rotates in reverse, the half-cutter 34 is pivoted in the direction away from the tag label tape 109 with print, into a release position where the half cutter 34 is spaced apart from the feed path of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • the pad 38 is bent so that its end portion opposed to the tag label tape 109 with print discharged from the tape discharge portion 30 becomes parallel to the tape, thus forming a receiving surface 38B.
  • the tag label tape 109 with print is of a five-layer structure obtained by bonding together the cover film 103 and the base tape 101 that has a four-layer structure consisting of the adhesive layer 101a, the base film 101b, the adhesive layer 101c, and the separation sheet 101d (see also Fig. 19 that will be described later).
  • the cover film 103, the adhesive layer 101a, the base film 101b, and the adhesive layer 101c are cut off from the tag label tape 109 with print located between the half-cutter 34 and the receiving surface 38B, and only the separation sheet 101d is left uncut, whereby half-cut lines HC (see Fig. 18 or the like that will be described later) are formed substantially along the tape width direction.
  • the half-cutter 34 comes into abutment against the receiving surface 38B, an overload is prevented from occurring in the half-cutter motor 129 by means of, for example, a sliding clutch (not shown) that is interposed in the gear train in the case of the above-described construction.
  • the receiving surface 38B also serves to guide the tag label tape 109 with print toward the label discharge port 11 together with the first guide portions 55, 56.
  • Figs. 9 and 10 are perspective views each showing the outward appearance of the cutting mechanism 15 with the half-cutter 34 removed from the internal unit 20.
  • the cutter motor 43 is driven again to rotate the cutter helical gear 42 counterclockwise (the arrow 70 direction), so the boss 50 is moved to the inner side again and the movable blade 41 pivots clockwise (the arrow 74 direction), thus separating the movable blade 41 away from the stationary blade 40 (see Fig. 9 ).
  • a cutter helical gear cam 42A is provided on the cylindrical outer wall of the cutter helical gear 42.
  • a micro switch 126 that is provided adjacent to the cutter helical gear 42 is switched from the OFF state to the ON state through the operation of the cutter helical gear cam 42A. The cut state of the tag label tape 109 with print can be thus detected.
  • Fig. 11 is a perspective view showing the detailed construction of the movable blade 41 and stationary blade 40 together with the half-cut unit 35.
  • Fig. 12 is a partial enlarged sectional view of Fig. 11 .
  • the stationary blade 40 is fixed to the side plate 44 (see Fig. 4 ), which is provided upright on the left side of the cartridge holder 6 inside the cutting mechanism 15, through the fixing hole 40A by means of a screw or the like.
  • the movable blade 41 is substantially V-shaped and includes a blade portion 45 provided at the cutting part, a handle portion 46 located opposite to the blade portion 45, and a bent portion 47.
  • the shaft hole 48 is provided in the bent portion 47, and the movable blade 41 is supported onto the side plate 44 at the shaft hole 48 so as to be pivotable about the bent portion 47.
  • the elongated hole 49 is formed in the handle potion 46 on the side opposite to the blade portion 45 provided at the cutting part of the movable blade 41.
  • the blade portion 45 is formed by a two-step blade whose blade surface includes two inclined surfaces of different inclination angles, namely a first inclined surface 45A and a second inclined surface 45B, which cause the thickness of the blade portion 45 to gradually decrease.
  • an end portion 36B of the first guide portion 36 of the above-described half-cut unit 35 which is opposed to the discharged tag label tape 109 with print is projected along the receiving surface 38B formed at an end portion of the pad 38, and is bent in the discharging direction of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • a contact surface 36C with respect to the tag label tape 109 with print discharged from the cartridge 7 has a gently curved surface with respect to the discharge direction of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • the leading end portion of the tag label tape 109 with print curled at a predetermined curvature or more. comes into abutment with the contact surface 36C of the first guide portion 36.
  • the leading end portion of the tag label tape 109 with print abuts a position on the downstream side (the lower side in Fig.
  • the leading end portion of the tag label tape 109 with print moves to the downstream side along the curved surface, whereby the tag label tape 109 with print is guided toward the label discharge port 11 without entering between the stationary blade 40 and the first guide portion 36 or the pad 38.
  • the first guide portion 36 is formed so that its guide width L1 (see Fig. 11 ) corresponding to the feed path of the tag label tape 109 with print is wider than the maximum width of the tag label tape 109 with print to be loaded (36 mm in the embodiment), and an inner surface 36D is formed so as to extend continuous to the contact surface 36C.
  • the inner surface 36D is formed so as to be opposed to the first and second inclined surfaces 45A, 45B (details of which will be described later) of the movable blade 41.
  • the first and second inclined surfaces 45A, 45B of the movable blade 41 partially abut the inner surface 36D (see Fig. 12 ).
  • the blade portion of the movable blade 41 is formed by a two-step blade as described above, upon cutting the tag label tape 109 with print by the movable blade 41, a gap 39 is formed between each of the contact surface 36C, which corresponds to the end portion of the first guide portion 36, and the inner surface 36D, and the second inclined surface 45B of the movable blade 41 (see Fig. 12 ).
  • Fig. 13 is a front view showing the outward appearance of the movable blade 41
  • Fig. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A of Fig. 13 .
  • the angle formed between the first inclined surface 45A and the back surface of the blade portion 45 on the side opposite to the first inclined surface 45A is 50 degrees in this embodiment.
  • Fig. 15 is a functional block diagram showing the control system of the tag-label producing device 1 according to this embodiment.
  • a control circuit 110 is arranged on a control board (not shown) of the tag-label producing device 1.
  • the control circuit 110 includes a CPU 111 that has a timer 111A provided therein and controls respective devices, an input/output interface 113 that is connected to the CPU 111 through a data bus 112, a CGROM 114, ROMs 115, 116, and a RAM 117.
  • dot pattern data for display is stored in correspondence with code data with respect to each of a large number of characters.
  • dot pattern data memory 115 dot pattern data is stored with respect to each of a large number of characters for printing characters such as alphabet letters or signs while being classified into respective typefaces (gothic type typeface, Mincho typeface, and the like) in correspondence with the size of the print letter for each typeface.
  • graphic pattern data for printing graphic images including grayscale expressions are also stored in the ROM 115.
  • the CPU 111 performs various computations on the basis of these various programs that are stored in the ROM 116.
  • the RAM 117 is provided with a text memory 117A, a print buffer 117B, a parameter storing area 117E, and the like.
  • the text memory 117A stores document data input from the PC 118.
  • the print buffer 117B stores as dot pattern data a plurality of dot patterns for printing letters, signs, and the like, or the number of applied pulses representing the amount of energy for forming each dot.
  • the print head 23 performs dot printing in accordance with the dot pattern data stored in the print buffer 117B.
  • Various computation data are stored in the parameter storing area 117E.
  • the PC 118 Connected to the input/output interface 113 are the PC 118, the print-head drive circuit 120 for driving the print head 23, a feed-motor drive circuit 121 for driving the feed motor 119, a cutter-motor drive circuit 122 for driving the cutter motor 43, a half-cutter motor drive circuit 128 for driving the half-cutter motor 129, a tape-discharging-motor drive circuit 123 for driving the tape discharging motor 65, a transmitting circuit 306 that generates a carrier wave for making access to (performing reading/writing with respect to) the RFID circuit element To via the loop antenna LC, and modulates the carrier wave on the basis of a control signal input from the control circuit 110, a receiving circuit 307 that performs demodulation of a reply signal received from the RFID circuit element To via the loop antenna LC, and outputs the resultant to the control circuit 110, a tape cut sensor 124 and a cut release sensor 125.
  • the text (document data) thereof is sequentially stored into the text memory 117A, and the print head 23 is driven via the drive circuit 120; the respective heater elements are selectively heated and driven in correspondence with printing dots of one line to thereby perform printing of dot pattern data stored in the print buffer 117B, and in synchronization with this, the feed motor 119 performs tape feed control via the drive circuit 121.
  • the transmitting circuit 306 performs modulation control of the carrier wave on the basis of a control signal from the control circuit 110
  • the receiving circuit 307 performs processing on a signal demodulated on the basis of a control signal from the control circuit 110.
  • the tape cut sensor 124 and the cut release sensor 125 are each composed of the cutter helical gear cam 42A and the micro switch 126 that are provided on the cylindrical outer wall of the cutter helical gear 42 (see Fig. 9 or 10 ). More particularly, when the cutter helical gear 42 is rotated by the cutter motor 43, the micro switch 126 is switched from OFF to ON through the operation of the cutter helical gear cam 42A, thus detecting the completion of cutting of the tag label tape 109 with print by the movable blade 45. The above-mentioned process constitutes the tape cut sensor 124.
  • the micro switch 126 When the cutter helical gear 42 is further rotated, the micro switch 126 is switched from ON to OFF through the operation of the cutter helical gear cam 42A, thus detecting the return of the movable blade 45 to the release position.
  • the above-mentioned process constitutes the cut release sensor 125.
  • Fig. 16 is a simplified circuit diagram showing the circuit configuration of the connecting portion between each of the transmitting circuit 306 and receiving circuit 307 with the loop antenna LC.
  • the transmitting circuit 306 is connected to the device-side loop antenna LC
  • the receiving circuit 307 is connected to a capacitor 310 that is connected in series with the device-side loop antenna LC.
  • Fig. 17 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the RFID circuit element To.
  • the RFID circuit element To includes the loop antenna 152 for performing transmission/reception of a signal to/from the loop antenna LC on the tag-label producing device 1 side by magnetic induction in a non-contact manner, and the IC circuit part 151 connected to the loop antenna 152.
  • the IC circuit part 151 includes a rectification part 153 for rectifying the carrier wave received by the loop antenna 152, a power source part 154 for storing the energy of the carrier wave rectified by the rectification part 153 to use the stored energy as a drive power source, a clock extraction part 156 for extracting a clock signal from the carrier wave received by the loop antenna 152 and supplying it to a control unit 155, a memory part 157 capable of storing a predetermined information signal, a modem part 158 connected to the loop antenna 152, and the control unit 155 for controlling the actuation of the RFID circuit element To via the rectification part 153, the clock extraction part 156, the modem part 158, and the like.
  • the modem part 158 performs demodulation of a communication signal from the loop antenna LC of the tag-label producing device 1 received by the loop antenna 152, and on the basis of a reply signal from the control unit 155, modulates the carrier wave received by the loop antenna 152 and transmits it again as a reflected wave from the loop antenna 152.
  • the control unit 155 executes a basic control, such as interpreting the received signal demodulated by the modem part 158, generating a reply signal on the basis of an information signal stored in the memory part 157, and returning the reply signal by the modem part 158.
  • Figs. 18A and 18B are views each showing an example of the outward appearance of the RFID label T formed after completing writing (or reading) of information to the RFID circuit element To and cutting of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • Fig. 18A is a top view
  • Fig. 18B is a bottom view.
  • Fig. 19A is a view obtained by rotating the cross-sectional view taken along the line IXXA-IXXA' in Fig. 18 counterclockwise by 90°
  • Fig. 19B is a view obtained by rotating the cross-sectional view taken along the line IXXB-IXXB' in Fig. 18 counterclockwise by 90°.
  • the RFID label T is of a five-layer structure with the cover film 103 added to the four-layer structure shown in Fig. 5 .
  • the five layers consist of the cover film 103, the adhesive layer 101a, the base film 101b, the adhesive layer 101c, and the separation sheet 101d that are laminated in the stated order from the cover film 103 side (the upper side in Fig. 19 ) toward the side opposite thereto (the lower side in Fig. 19 ).
  • the RFID circuit element To including the loop antenna 152 provided on the back side of the base film 101b is equipped inside each of the base film 101b and adhesive layer 101c, and the label print R (in this example, the letters "RF-ID" indicating the kind of the RFID label T) corresponding to information stored in the RFID circuit element To, or the like is printed on the back surface of the cover film 103.
  • the label print R in this example, the letters "RF-ID" indicating the kind of the RFID label T
  • the half-cut lines HC (half-cutting part; this example includes two half-cut lines HC, a front half-cut line HC1 and a rear half-cut line HC2, details of which will be described later) are formed by the half-cutter 34 substantially along the tape width direction in the cover film 103, the adhesive layer 101a, the base film 101b, and the adhesive layer 101c.
  • the area of the cover film 103 sandwiched between these half-cut lines HC1, HC2 serves as a print area S where the label print R is printed, and the areas on both sides of the print area S across the half-cut lines HC1, HC2 with respect to the tape length direction respectively serve as a front margin area S1 and a rear margin area S2.
  • a plurality of RFID labels T are sequentially produced from the tag label tape 109 with print obtained by bonding the base tape 101 and the cover film 103 together.
  • information on the remaining number of RFID circuit elements To in the base tape 101 (in this example, information on the sequential order of an RFID circuit element To relating to the RFID label T. That is, usage number information indicating that the RFID circuit element To being used is the second RFID circuit element To out of 30 RFID circuit elements To equipped in the base tape 101) R1 is printed in the front margin area S1 of the cover film 103 of each RFID label T.
  • the total length of the label is set to a predetermined value in advance (fixedly at a value substantially equal to the arrangement pitch of the RFID circuit elements To, for example).
  • the dimension (the distance from the leading end of the tape to the half-cut line HC1) X1 of the front margin area with respect to the tape length direction is also set to a predetermined value (fixedly in this example) in advance.
  • the dimension X (the distance from the half-cut line HC1 to the half-cut line HC2) of the print area S with respect to the tape length direction is also set so as to be variable in accordance with the content or form (for example, the number of letters, font, or the like) of the label print R.
  • the dimension (the distance from the half-cut line HC2 to the rear end of the tape) X2 of the rear margin area with respect to the tape length direction is set so as to be variable in accordance with the value of the dimension X of the print area S (however, as will be described later, there are cases where the rear half-cut line HC2 is not provided).
  • the above-mentioned identifier PM remains in the separation sheet 101d, and the distance from the leading end of the identifier PM in the tape feed direction to the leading end of the RFID circuit element To in the tape feed direction, which is offset with respect to the identifier PM, is set to a predetermined value L. It should be noted that instead of providing a black-painted marking as shown in each of Figs.
  • a hole bored by laser machining or the like so as to substantially penetrate the base tape 101 may also serve as the identifier PM.
  • the mark sensor 127 is formed by a known reflection-type photoelectric sensor composed of a light projector and a light receiver
  • the identifier PM formed by the above-mentioned hole comes to the position between the light projector and the light receiver, light from the light projector passes through the hole of the identifier PM and the transparent cover film 103 and is no longer reflected and hence no longer received by the light receiver, whereby the control output from the light receiver is inverted.
  • Fig. 20 is a view showing an example of the screen displayed on the PC 118 (the terminal 118a or the general purpose computer 118b) mentioned above when making access to (performing reading from or writing to) the RFID tag information of the IC circuit part 151 of the RFID circuit element To by the tag-label producing device 1 as described above.
  • the tag label kind (access frequency and tape dimensions), the label print R printed in correspondence with the RFID circuit element To, an access (reading or writing) ID as identification information (tag ID) unique to that RFID circuit element To, the address of item information stored in the information server IS, and the storage destination addresses of those corresponding information in the route serer RS, and the like can be displayed on the PC 118.
  • the tag-label producing device 1 is activated and the label print R is printed onto the cover film 103, and also information such as the writing ID or item information is written to the IC circuit part 151 (or information such as the reading ID or item information previously stored in the IC circuit part 151 is read).
  • the correspondence between the tag ID of the RFID circuit element To of the produced RFID label T and information read from the IC circuit part 151 (or information written into the IC circuit part 151) of that RFID label T is stored in the route server RS described above and can be referenced as required.
  • the most prominent feature of this embodiment resides in that, in the tag-label producing device 1 having the basic configuration as described above, at the time when the RFID circuit element To reaches the communication position with the loop antenna LC as the tag label tape 109 with print is fed, the subsequent control on the print head 23 or the loop antenna LC is switched in accordance with whether or not printing by the print head 23 has been completed at that time.
  • the control behaviors according to the feed position will be described below with reference to Figs. 21 to 29 .
  • Figs. 21A to 21K are explanatory views each showing the positional relation between the identifier PM, RFID circuit element To, and print area S for label print R of the tag label tape 109 with print that is continuously paid out, and the loop antenna LC, the mark sensor 127, the half-cut unit 35, the cutting mechanism 15, and the print head 23.
  • the distance L in the base tape 101 from the leading end position of the identifier PM in the tape feed direction to the leading end of the RFID circuit element To in the tape feed direction is set in advance so to be equal to the distance Lo in the tape feed direction between the mark sensor 127 and the print head 23.
  • FIG. 21A shows a state in which, after the base tape 101 paid out from the first roll 102 of the cartridge 7 and the cover film 103 paid out from the second roll 104 are bonded together by the tape feed roller 27 and the pressure roller 28, the leading end of the bonded tape reaches the cutting mechanism 15.
  • a tape that has been bonded but for which printing has yet been performed by the print head 23 onto the cover film 103 will herein be also referred to as the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • the beginning of the tag label tape 109 with print is being fed, and the identifier PM has not been detected by the mark sensor 127.
  • the preset position of the front half-cut line HC1 (as described above, the position at the distance X1 from the leading end of the tape; see Fig. 18 ) reaches the position of the half-cut unit 35 ( Fig. 21D ).
  • the detection of the arrival at this position is performed by detecting that the tag label tape 109 with print has moved by a predetermined distance from the state shown in Fig. 21B mentioned above (identifier PM detection start state).
  • the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped, and the front half-cut line HC1 is formed by means of the half-cut unit 35 ( Fig. 21D ).
  • the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is resumed, and as the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print further proceeds from the state shown in Fig. 21D mentioned above ( Fig. 21E ), the RFID circuit element To reaches the position of the loop antenna LC ( Fig. 21F ).
  • the feeding and printing of the tag label tape 109 with print are temporarily stopped (interrupted), and after performing wireless communication with the RFID circuit element To by means of the loop antenna LC in this feeding stopped state, the feeding and printing are resumed ( Fig. 21G ), thus eventually completing printing of all of the string of letters (“ABCDEFGHIJKLMN”) ( Fig. 21H ).
  • the preset position of the rear half-cut line HC2 (as described above, the position at the distance X2 from the rear end of the tape; see Fig. 18 ) reaches the position of the half-cut unit 35.
  • the detection of the arrival at this position is performed by detecting that the tag label tape 109 with print has moved by a predetermined distance from the state shown in Fig. 21B .
  • the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped, and the rear half-cut line HC2 is formed by means of the half-cut unit 35 ( Fig. 21I ).
  • each RFID label T information on the remaining number of RFID circuit elements To is printed in the front margin area S1 of the cover film 103.
  • the remaining-number information relating to a given RFID label T is printed in the front margin area S1 of the cover film 103 at the time of producing the previous immediately preceding RFID label T. That is, as the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print further proceeds from the state shown in Fig. 21I mentioned above, the front margin area S1 of the cover film 103 corresponding to the above-mentioned next RFID label T reaches the position of the print head 23.
  • the detection of the arrival at this position is performed by detecting that the tag label tape 109 with print has moved by a predetermined distance from the state shown in Fig. 21B .
  • printing of finished print number R1 as the above-mentioned remaining-number information is started with respect to the cover film 103 ( Fig. 21J ).
  • the detection of the arrival at this position is also performed by detecting that the tag label tape 109 with print has moved by a predetermined distance from the state shown in Fig. 21B .
  • the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped, and cutting is performed by the cutting mechanism 15 at the cutting line CL ( Fig. 21K ), so the leading end side of the tag label tape 109 with print is cut off to produce the RFID label T.
  • Figs. 22A and 22B are views, substantially corresponding to Fig. 18A described above, each showing an example of the RFID label T completed as described above.
  • Fig. 22A shows the example of an RFID label T-1 that is produced for the first time (that is, the first RFID label) using a new base tape 101 and a new cover film 103.
  • Fig. 22B shows the example of another RFID label T-2 (that is, the second RFID label onward).
  • the RFID circuit element To is arranged on the center side in the tape length direction, the label print R is printed in the print area S corresponding to the RFID circuit element To, and the front margin area S1 where the identifier PM is present, and the rear margin area S2 are provided across the front and rear half cut lines HC1, HC2, respectively, from the print area S.
  • the RFID label shown in Fig. 22A is the first RFID label T-1, the remaining-number information is not printed in the front margin area S1, whereas the finished print number R1 is printed in the front margin area S1 of the second RFID label T-2 onward (in this example, the second RFID label) shown in Fig. 22B .
  • the length of the print area S varies according to the form of the label print R as described above, if the length of the print area S becomes larger than a certain length for reasons such as the large number of letters in the label print R, the rear half-cut line HC2 is omitted (that is, the rear margin area S2 is not set), so the area extending all the way up to the rear end of the tag label tape 109 with print serves as the print area S where the label print R is printed.
  • Figs. 23A and 23B are views, respectively corresponding to Figs. 22A and 22B mentioned above, each showing an example of such an RFID label T with no rear margin area S2.
  • Fig. 23A shows the example of the RFID label T-1 that is produced for the first time using a new base tape 101 and a new cover film 103 (that is, the first RFID label).
  • Fig. 23B shows the example of another RFID label T-2 (that is, the second RFID label onward).
  • the RFID circuit element To is arranged on the center side in the tape length direction, the label print R is printed in the print area S corresponding to the RFID circuit element To, and only the front margin area S1 where the identifier PM is present is provided across the front half-cut line HC1 from the print area S. Since the RFID label shown in Fig. 23A is the first RFID label T-1, the remaining-number information is not printed in the front margin area S1, whereas the finished print number R1 is printed in the front margin area S1 of the second RFID label T-2 onward shown in Fig. 23B .
  • Figs. 24A to 24K are explanatory views each showing the positional relation between the identifier PM, RFID circuit element To, and print area S for label print R of the tag label tape 109 with print that is continuously paid out, and the loop antenna LC, the mark sensor 127, the half-cut unit 35, the cutting mechanism 15, and the print head 23.
  • a relatively short string of letters alphabet letters "AMCDEFJHIJ" is printed as an example.
  • Figs. 24A to 24E are the same as Figs. 21A to 21E . That is, when, after the paying out of the tag label tape 109 with print from the cartridge 7 is started ( Fig. 24A ), the tag label tape 109 with print is further fed and the leading end of the identifier PM reaches the position of the mark sensor 127 ( Fig. 24B ), the printing of the label print R onto the cover film 103 is started ( Fig. 24C ). When the feeding further proceeds, and the position of the front half-cut line HC1 reaches the position of the half-cut unit 35, the front half-cut line HC1 is formed by means of the half-cut unit 35 ( Fig. 24D ); thereafter, the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is resumed, and the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print further proceeds ( Fig. 24E ).
  • the RFID circuit element To reaches the position of the loop antenna LC ( Fig. 24G ).
  • the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is temporarily stopped (interrupted), and after performing wireless communication with the RFID circuit element To by means of the loop antenna LC in this feeding stopped state, the feeding is resumed ( Fig. 24H ).
  • Figs. 24I to 24K are the same as those in Figs. 21I to 21K described above. That is, when the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print further proceeds from the state shown in Fig. 24H mentioned above, and the position of the half-cut line HC2 reaches the position of the half-cut unit 35, the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped, and the rear half-cut line HC2 is formed by means of the half-cut unit 35 ( Fig. 24I ). When the feeding further proceeds and the front margin area S1 of the cover film 103 corresponding to the next RFID label T reaches the position of the print head 23, the printing of the finished print number R1 is started ( Fig. 24J ).
  • Figs. 25A and 25B are views, substantially corresponding to Figs. 22A and 22B described above, each showing an example of the RFID label T completed as described above.
  • the RFID label shown in Fig. 25A is the first RFID label T-1
  • the remaining-number information is not printed in the front margin area S1
  • the finished print number R1 is printed in the front margin area S1 of the second RFID label T-2 onward shown in Fig. 25B .
  • the description is based on the assumption that the communication between the loop antenna LC and the RFID circuit element To has succeeded and that the writing of information to the IC circuit part 151 of the RFID circuit element To (or reading of information from the IC circuit part 151) has succeeded.
  • the corresponding printing may be performed in order to clearly notify the operator to that effect.
  • Figs. 26A to 26F, 26G' to 26I', and 26 J and 26K are explanatory views, corresponding to Fig. 21 mentioned above, showing the processing when the above-mentioned communication error occurs in the above-mentioned case (A) where the print length is relatively long.
  • Figs. 26A to 26F are completely the same as Figs. 21A to 21F .
  • the feeding and printing of the tag label tape 109 with print are temporarily stopped (interrupted), and wireless communication with the RFID circuit element To is performed by means of the loop antenna LC in the feeding stopped state.
  • printing is interrupted in the state where printing of "ABCDEFGHIJK", out of "ABCDEFGHIJKLMN" to be finally printed, has been substantially completed.
  • Fig. 27A is a view, corresponding to Fig. 22A described above, showing an (in this example, the first) RFID label T'-1 completed as described above (in the communication failure state). Since the rear half-cut line HC2 is omitted as described above, in the RFID label T'-1, the RFID circuit element To is arranged on the center side in the tape length direction, the label print R and the above-described other form of print R' are printed in the print area S corresponding to the RFID circuit element To, and the front margin area S1 where the identifier PM is present is provided across the front half-cut line HC1 from the print area S.
  • the RFID circuit element To Since the rear half-cut line HC2 is omitted as described above, in the RFID label T'-1, the RFID circuit element To is arranged on the center side in the tape length direction, the label print R and the above-described other form of print R' are printed in the print area S corresponding to the RFID circuit element To, and the front margin area S1 where the identifier PM is present
  • FIG. 27B shows a case where after the production of the RFID label T'-1, communication has succeeded with the next RFID circuit element To onward ( Fig. 27B is substantially the same as Fig. 22B ). Even when communication fails as described above, the printing of the remaining-number information is performed as usual for the next label to be produced (see Fig. 26J or 26K described above). Accordingly, in this example, the finished print number R1 is printed in the front margin area S1 in the second RFID label T-2.
  • Fig. 28A to 28G, 28H' to 28I', and 28J and 28K are explanatory views showing the processing when the above-mentioned communication error occurs in the case where the print length is relatively short.
  • a relatively short string of letters alphabet letters "ABCDEFGHIJ"
  • Figs. 28A to 28G are completely the same as Figs. 24A to 24G .
  • the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is temporarily stopped (interrupted), and wireless communication with the RFID circuit element To is performed by means of the loop antenna LC in the feeding stopped state.
  • printing is interrupted in the state where printing of all of the letter string "ABCDEFGHIJ" to be finally printed has been completed.
  • Fig. 29A is a view, corresponding to Fig. 25A described above, showing an (in this example, the first) RFID label T'-1 completed as described above (in the communication failure state). Since the rear half-cut line HC2 is omitted as described above, in the RFID label T'-1, the RFID circuit element To is arranged on the center side in the tape length direction, the label print R (printing of all the letters has been completed) and the above-described other form of print R' are printed in the print area S corresponding to the RFID circuit element To, and the front margin area S1 where the identifier PM is present is provided across the front half-cut line HC1 from the print area S. Fig.
  • FIG. 29B shows a case where after the production of the RFID label T'-1, communication has succeeded with the RFID circuit element To onward ( Fig. 29B is substantially the same as Fig. 25B ). Even when communication fails as described above, the printing of the remaining-number information is performed as usual for the next label to be produced (see Figs. 28J and 28K described above). Accordingly, in this example, the finished print number R1 is printed in the front margin area S1 in the second RFID label T-2.
  • a control is performed in which, depending on whether or not printing with the print head 23 has been completed at the time when the RFID circuit element To reaches the communication position with the loop antenna LC, the subsequent operations of the print head 23, loop antenna LC, and the like are switch-controlled in a coordinated manner.
  • Fig. 30 is a flowchart showing the procedure of control executed by the control circuit 110 in order to perform the above-described control.
  • step S100 this flow is started when a predetermined RFID label producing operation is performed by the tag-label producing device 1 via the PC 118.
  • step S100 preparatory processing (for details, see Fig. 31 that will be described later) is executed.
  • an operation signal from the PC 118 is input (via the communication line NW and the input/output interface 113), and on the basis of this operation signal, setting of print data or communication data with the RFID element To, or the like is performed.
  • step S5 a control signal is output to the feed-motor drive circuit 121 via the input/output interface 113, and the tape feed roller 27 and the ribbon take-up roller 106 are rotationally driven by the drive force of the feed motor 121. Further, a control signal is output to the tape discharging motor 65 via the tape-discharging-motor drive circuit 123, and the drive roller 51 is rotationally driven. Due to these operations, the base tape 101 is paid out from the first roll 102 and supplied to the tape feed roller 27, an the cover film 103 is paid out from the second roll 104.
  • the base tape 101 and the cover film 103 are adhered and integrated together to form the tag label tape 109 with print, which is carried in the direction to the outside of the cartridge 7 and further to the outside of the tag-label producing device 1.
  • step S10 on the basis of a detection signal of the mark sensor 127 input via the input/output interface 113, it is determined whether or not the identifier PM of the tag label tape 109 with print has been detected (in other words, whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has reached the printing start position). The determination is not satisfied and this procedure is repeated until the identifier PM is detected, and upon detecting the identifier PM, the determination is satisfied, and the process transfers to the next step S15.
  • step S20 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described front half-cut position (in other words, whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has reached the position where the half-cutter 34 of the half-cut mechanism 35 directly faces the front half-cut line HC1 set in step S100).
  • the determination at this time may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above (such as by counting the number of pulses output by the feed-motor drive circuit 121 for driving the feed motor 119 that is a pulse motor).
  • the determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the half-cut position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the half-cut position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S25.
  • step S25 a control signal is output to each of the feed-motor drive circuit 121 and the tape-discharging-motor drive circuit 123 via the input/output interface 113, and the drives of the feed motor 119 and tape discharging motor 65 are stopped to thereby stop the rotations of the tape feed roller 27, ribbon take-up roller 106, and drive roller 51. Accordingly, as the tag label tape 109 with print paid out from the cartridge 7 moves in the discharge direction, the paying out of the base tape 101 from the first roll 102, the paying out of the cover film 103 from the second roll 104, and the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print are stopped in the state with the half-cutter 34 of the half-cut mechanism 35 directly facing the front half-cut line HC1 set in step S100. Further, at this time, a control signal is also output to the print-head drive circuit 120 via the input/output interface 113, and the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to thereby stop (interrupt) the printing of the label print R.
  • step S30 a control signal is output to the half-cutter motor drive circuit 128 via the input/output interface 113 to drive the half-cutter motor 129, and the half-cutter 34 is pivoted to perform front half-cut processing of cutting the cover film 103, adhesive layer 101a, base film 101b, and adhesive layer 101c of the tag label tape 109 with print to thereby form the front half-cut line HC1 (see Fig. 21D ).
  • step S35 the process transfers to step S35 where, in the same manner as in step S5 mentioned above, the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is resumed by rotationally driving the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51, and in the same manner as in step S15, the print head 23 is energized to resume the printing of the label print R.
  • step S40 in accordance with the print end position (see step S130 that will be described later), which is set so as to be variable in accordance with the content of print (the number of print letters, font, and the like) in step S100, and the tag rear end position (see step S145 that will be described later), which is set in accordance with the information on the kind of the cartridge 7 included in the operation signal input by the operator in step S100, it is determined with respect to the tag label tape 109 with print whether or not the communication position with the RFID circuit element To (the position where the RFID circuit element To directly faces the loop antenna LC) is reached before the printing of all of the label print R with respect to the print area S is finished (the state shown in Fig.
  • step S40 mentioned above the determination of step S40 mentioned above is satisfied, and the process transfers to step S200 where the processing of producing a long print label is performed.
  • the feeding and printing are stopped to perform transmission/reception of information; thereafter, the feeding and printing are resumed to complete the printing, and after the feeding is further continued and then stopped at the rear half-cut position to form the rear half-cut line HC2, printing (margin printing) of the finished print number R1 for the next RFID label T is performed (see Fig. 32 that will be described later).
  • step S40 mentioned above is not satisfied, and the process transfers to step S300 where the processing of producing a short print label is performed.
  • the feeding is further continued; upon arrival at the communication position with the RFID circuit element To (the position where the RFID circuit element To directly faces the loop antenna LC), the feeding is stopped to perform transmission/reception of information, and after the feeding is further continued and then stopped at the rear half-cut position to form the rear half-cut line HC2, printing (margin printing) of the finished print number R1 for the next RFID label T is performed (see Fig. 33 that will be described later).
  • step S45 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described full-cut position (in other words, whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has reached the position where the movable blade 41 of the cutting mechanism 15 directly faces the cutting line CL set in step S100).
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above (such as by counting the number of pulses output by the feed-motor drive circuit 121 for driving the feed motor 119 that is a pulse motor).
  • the determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the front full-cut position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the front full-cut position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S50.
  • step S50 in the same manner as step S25 mentioned above, the rotations of the tape feed roller 27, ribbon take-up roller 106, and drive roller 51 are stopped to thereby stop the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print. Accordingly, in the state with the movable blade 41 of the cutting mechanism 15 directly facing the cutting line CL set in step S100, the paying out of the base tape 101 from the first roll 102, the paying out of the cover film 103 from the second roll 104, and the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print stop.
  • step S55 a control signal is output to the cutter-motor drive circuit 122 to drive the cutter motor 43, and the movable blade 41 of the cutting mechanism 15 is pivoted to perform full-cut processing of cutting (severing) all of the cover film 103, adhesive layer 101a, base film 101b, adhesive layer 101c, and separation sheet 101d of the tag label tape 109 with print to form the cutting line CL (see Fig. 21K ). Due to the severing by the cutting mechanism 15, a label-shaped RFID label T from which RFID tag information of the RFID circuit element To has been read and on which corresponding predetermined printing has been performed, is produced as it is cut off from the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • step S60 a control signal is output to the tape-discharging motor drive circuit 123 via the input/output interface 113 to resume the drive of the tape discharging motor 65, thereby rotating the drive roller 51. Accordingly, the feeding by the drive roller 51 is resumed, the RFID label T produced in a label shape in step S55 mentioned above is fed toward the label discharge port 11 and discharged to the outside of the tag-label producing device 1 from the label discharge port 11, and this flow is ended.
  • step S55 and the label discharge processing in step S60 mentioned above may be performed in synchronization with each other as described below, for example.
  • the cutter motor 43 is driven via the input/output interface 113 and the cutter-motor drive circuit 122, the cutter helical gear 42 is rotated counterclockwise (the arrow 70 direction in Fig. 3 ), and the roller supporting holder 57 is pivoted counterclockwise (the arrow 71 direction in Fig. 3 ) about the holder supporting portion 59 via the boss 50 and the cam 60.
  • the tag label tape 109 with print is pressed against the drive roller 51 by the pressure roller 52, and the tag label tape 109 with print is retained until the tape is cut.
  • the tape discharging motor 65 is rotated via the input/output interface 113 and the tape-discharging-motor drive circuit 123, and the drive roller 51 is rotated via the gear train 66, thereby discharging the tape (RFID label T) that has been retained. Then, the determination as to whether or not the RFID label T has been discharged is made in the control circuit 110 on the basis of whether or not a predetermined period of time (for example, 0.5 to 1.0 sec) has elapsed after starting the discharge of the tape.
  • a predetermined period of time for example, 0.5 to 1.0 sec
  • the rotation of the tape discharging motor 65 is stopped via the input/output interface 113 and the tape-discharging-motor drive circuit 123, and if the RFID label T has not been discharged, the rotation is continued until the discharge is completed.
  • the cutter motor 43 is rotated again via the input/output interface 113 and the cutter-motor drive circuit 122. Accordingly, also the cutter helical gear 42 rotates again, thus pivoting and returning the movable blade 41 to the release position again (see Fig. 12 ).
  • the roller supporting holder 57 is pivoted by means of the urging spring 61 in the direction away from the pressure roller 52 (the direction opposite to the arrow 71 direction in Fig. 3 ), and retained by the stopper 72 while leaving a certain spacing. Thereafter, on the basis of the detection signal from the cut release sensor 125, the detection as to whether or not the above-mentioned cut release operation has been completed is made by the control circuit 110.
  • the rotation of the cutter motor 43 is continued until the completion of the cut release operation. Further, if the micro switch 126 has been switched from ON to OFF and the cut release operation has been completed, the rotation of the cutter motor 43 is stopped, thus finishing the full-cut processing and label discharge processing mentioned above.
  • Fig. 31 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step S100 descried above.
  • an operation signal for which input operation has been made from the PC 118 is input (identified) via the input/output interface 113.
  • This operation signal contains print information including, for example, the letter, design, pattern, and the like of the label print R and finished print number R1 designated by the operator or the font (typeface, size, thickness, and the like) thereof, or the code data of characters such as letters and numerals.
  • the operation signal also contains this writing information (RFID tag information including at least tag ID as identification information).
  • the operation signal also contains information on the kind of the cartridge 7 loaded on the cartridge holder 6 (in other words, tag attribute information such as the arrangement interval of the RFID circuit elements in the base tape 101, the tape width of the base tape 101, and the like).
  • a portion to be detected (for example, an identifier with an uneven configuration or the like), which is separately provided to the cartridge 7, may be detected by suitable detection device (those performing mechanical detection such as a mechanical switch, a sensor performing optical detection, a sensor performing magnetic detection, or the like), with the kind of the cartridge 7 being automatically detected and retrieved on the basis of the resulting detection signal.
  • suitable detection device such as a mechanical switch, a sensor performing optical detection, a sensor performing magnetic detection, or the like
  • step S110 print data corresponding to the above-mentioned printing information is created on the basis of the operation signal input in step S105 mentioned above.
  • step S115 on the basis of the operation signal input in step S105 mentioned above, communication data corresponding to the above-mentioned writing information is created.
  • this procedure is executed in the case where the RFID label T is produced by performing writing of information to the RFID circuit element To, in the case where the FID label T is produced by performing reading of information previously stored in the RFID circuit element To, this procedure may be omitted.
  • step S120 the process transfers to step S120, and the position of the front half-cut line HC1 described above is set.
  • the position of the front half-cut line HC1 on the tape corresponding to the above-mentioned cartridge information is set. That is, as described above, the arrangement interval (in other words, the distance between the cutting line CL and the cutting line CL, or the length of one RFID label T) of the RFID circuit elements in the base tape 101 is uniquely determined by the kind of the cartridge 7.
  • the position of the front half-cut line HC1 is (unlike the rear half-cut line HC2) previously determined (for example, stored in a suitable location of the control circuit 110 in the form of a table) by the length of this RFID label T to be a certain position from the leading end of the tag label tape 109 with print, irrespective of the content of the label print R.
  • the position of the front half-cut line HC1 mentioned above is (fixedly) set to a position that is previously defined for each cartridge 7.
  • step S125 the communication position on the tape with the RFID circuit clement To described above is set.
  • the arrangement position of the RFID circuit element To in the tag label tape 109 with print is (fixedly) set to a position previously defined for each cartridge 7 under the assumption that the kind (size) and arrangement position of the RFID circuit element To are previously determined by the kind of the cartridge 7 to be a certain position from the leading end of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • step S130 the position on the tape where the printing of the label print R ends is calculated. That is, this position varies in accordance with the content of the label print R such that when the print length is long, the printing end position becomes (relatively) closer to the rear end portion of the label, and when the print is short, the printing end position becomes (relatively) closer to the front end portion of the label.
  • step S135 the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 described above is set.
  • the position of the rear half-cut line HC 2 on the tape corresponding to the above-mentioned cartridge information is set. That is, on the basis of the operation signal input in step S105 mentioned above, under the assumption that the distance from the printing end position to the rear half-cut line HC2 is previously determined to a certain distance by the kind of the cartridge 7, the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 on the tape is calculated by adding (intervening) the determined distance with respect to the printing end position calculated in step S130 mentioned above.
  • step S140 the process transfers to step S140, and the position (full-cut position) of the cutting line CL of the tag label tape 109 with print is set.
  • step S120 in this setting as well, on the basis of the operation signal input in step S105 mentioned above and under the assumption that the size of the label is previously determined to be a certain size by the kind of the cartridge 7, the cutting position of the tag label tape 109 with print is (fixedly) set to a position that is previously defined for each cartridge 7.
  • step S145 the rear end position of the RFID circuit element To on the tape mentioned above is set.
  • the rear end position of the RFID circuit element To in the tag label tape 109 with print is (fixedly) set to a position that is previously defined for each cartridge 7.
  • step S150 it is determined whether or not the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 set in step S135 or the position of the cutting line CL set in step S140 is located on the label rear end side with respect to the rear end position of the RFID circuit element To set in step S145. If the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 or the position of the cutting line CL is set on the label rear end side, the determination is satisfied, and the process transfers to step S160.
  • step S155 positional correction (resetting) is performed so that the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 and the position of the cutting line CL are both on the label rear end side with respect to the rear end position of the RFID circuit element To, and the process transfers to step S160.
  • step S160 where, on the basis of the operation signal input in step S105 mentioned above, margin printing data (remaining-number information data) corresponding to the above-mentioned printing information is created.
  • margin printing data residual-number information data
  • the process transfers to step S160 where, on the basis of the operation signal input in step S105 mentioned above, margin printing data (remaining-number information data) corresponding to the above-mentioned printing information is created.
  • the count may be done and stored on a server or the like associated with a portion to the detected which is separately provided to the cartridge 7, the remaining number (usage number) being automatically acquired by performing a search on the server upon the loading of the cartridge 7. Further, the remaining number may also be acquired by performing transmission/reception of information with each RFID circuit element To (see a fourth embodiment that will be described later). It should be noted that in the four embodiment that will be described later, in this step S160, information R1 that will be described later is created as the margin printing data corresponding to the above-mentioned printing information.
  • step S165 the printing position of the margin printing data (remaining-number information; information R1 in the fourth embodiment that will be described later) created in step S160 mentioned above is set.
  • This setting is also performed in the same manner as described above. That is, on the basis of the operation signal input in step S105 mentioned above and under the assumption that the size of the label is previously determined to be a certain size by the kind of the cartridge 7, the position of the front margin area S1 where the margin printing is executed is (fixedly) set to a position that is previously defined for each cartridge 7, with the position (full-cut position) of the cutting line CL of the tag label tape 109 with print taken as a reference, for example.
  • step S170 when performing communication with an RFID circuit element To from the loop antenna LC that will be described later, variables M, N for counting the number of times communication retry is performed (the number of times of access try) if there is no response from the RFID circuit element To, and a flag F indicating whether or not communication has succeeded are initialized to 0, and this routine is ended.
  • Fig. 32 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step S200 described above.
  • step S210 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the communication position with the loop antenna LC described above (in other words, whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has substantially reached the position as set in step S125 mentioned above where the loop antenna LC substantially directly faces the position of the RFID circuit element To).
  • step S20 of Fig. 30 described above the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the communication position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the communication position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S220.
  • step S220 as in step S25 mentioned above, the rotations of the tape feed roller 27, ribbon take-up roller 106, and drive roller 51 are stopped, and feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped in the state with the loop antenna LC substantially directly facing the RFID circuit element To. Further, the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to thereby stop (interrupt) the printing of the above-mentioned label print R (see Fig. 21F ).
  • step S400 transmission/reception of information is performed via wireless communication between the antenna LC and the RFID circuit element To, thereby performing information transmission/reception processing of writing the information created in step S115 of Fig. 31 mentioned above to the IC circuit part 151 of the RFID circuit element To (or reading information previously stored in the IC circuit part) (for details, see Fig. 34 that will be described later).
  • step S700 error processing (details of which will be described later) for notifying the operator of this communication failure on the label is carried out.
  • step S600 The process then transfers to step S600.
  • step S240 in the same manner as in step S35 of Fig. 30 , the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51 are rotationally driven to resume the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print, and the print head 23 is energized to resume the printing of the label print R.
  • step S400 the amount of energization (the amount of energy applied per unit time) of the print head 23 may be increased than usual at the time of the printing in step S240 mentioned above.
  • step S250 the process transfers to step S250, and it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described printing end position (calculated in step S130 of Fig. 31 mentioned above).
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the printing end position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the printing end position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S260.
  • step S260 as in step S25 of Fig. 30 mentioned above, the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to stop the printing of the above-mentioned label print R. This completes the printing of the label print R with respect to the print area S (see Fig. 21H ).
  • step S500 rear half-cut processing, in which the formation of the rear half-cut line HC2 is performed using the half-cutter 34 of the half-cut unit 35 after the tag label tape 109 with print is fed to a predetermined rear half-cut position, is carried out (for details, see Fig. 35 that will be described later).
  • step S600 margin printing processing, in which printing of the finished print number R1 described above is performed with respect to the front margin area S1 (of the next RFID label T) located on the tape rear end side with respect to the above-mentioned cutting line CL, is executed (for details, see Fig. 36 that will be described later), and this routine is ended.
  • Fig. 33 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step S300 described above.
  • step 310 in the same manner as in step S250 of Fig. 32 , it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described printing end position (calculated in step S130 of Fig. 31 mentioned above). The determination at this time as well may be performed in the same manner as in step S250. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the printing end position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the printing end position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S320.
  • step S320 in the same manner as in step S260 of Fig. 32 mentioned above, the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to thereby stop the printing of the above-mentioned label print R. This completes the printing of the label print R with respect to the print area S (see Fig. 24F ).
  • step S330 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the communication position with the loop antenna LC described above.
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed in the same manner as in step S210. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the communication position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the communication position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S340.
  • step S340 in the same manner as in step S220 mentioned above, the rotations of the tape feed roller 27, ribbon take-up roller 106, and drive roller 51 are stopped, and feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped in the state with the loop antenna LC substantially directly facing the RFID circuit element To (see Fig. 24G ).
  • step S400 after step S340 is the same as that of Fig. 32 , and information transmission/reception processing of performing transmission/reception of information via wireless communication between the antenna LC and the RFID circuit element To is carried out (for details, see Fig. 34 that will be described later).
  • step S700 error processing (details of which will be described later) is performed.
  • step S360 as in step S240 of Fig. 32 , the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51 are rotationally driven to resume the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print (see Fig. 24H ).
  • steps S500 and S600 after step S360 are the same as those of Fig. 32 , the description thereof is omitted.
  • Fig. 34 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step S400 described above with reference to Figs. 32 and 33 . It should be noted that in this example, of the information writing and information reading described above, the description is directed to the case of information writing.
  • a control signal is output to the above-described transmitting circuit 306 (see Fig. 15 or the like) via the input/output interface 113, and as an "Erase" signal for initializing information stored in the memory part 157 of the RFID circuit element To, a carrier wave on which predetermined modulation has been performed is transmitted via the loop antenna LC to the RFID circuit element To to which information is to be written.
  • the memory part 157 of the RFID circuit element To is thus initialized.
  • step S410 a control signal is transmitted to the transmitting circuit 306 via the input/output interface 113, and as a "Verify" signal for verifying the contents of the memory part 157, a carrier wave on which predetermined modulation has been performed is transmitted via the loop antenna LC to the RFID circuit element To to which information is to be written, thus urging a reply.
  • step S415 a reply signal transmitted from the RFID circuit element To, to which writing is to be performed, in response to the above-mentioned "Verify" signal is received via the loop antenna LC, and taken in via the receiving circuit 307 (see Fig. 15 or the like) and the input/output interface 113.
  • steps S420 on the basis of the reply signal received as mentioned above, information in the memory part 157 of that RFID circuit element To is checked to determine whether or not the memory part 157 has been properly initialized.
  • step S435 an error display signal is output to the above-mentioned PC 118 via the input/output interface 113 and the communication line NW, and a corresponding writing failure (error) display is made.
  • step S420 the process transfers to step S440 where a control signal is output to the transmitting circuit 306, and as a "Program" signal for writing desired data to the memory part 157, a carrier wave on which predetermined modulation has been performed is transmitted to the RFID circuit element To to which information is to be written, thus performing writing of information.
  • step S445 a control signal is output to the transmitting circuit 306, and as the "Verify" signal, a carrier wave on which predetermined modulation has been performed is transmitted via the loop antenna LC to the RFID circuit element To to which information is to be written, thus urging a reply.
  • step S450 a reply signal transmitted from the RFID circuit element To, to which writing is to be performed, in response to the received "Verify” signal mentioned above is received via the loop antenna LC, and taken in via the receiving circuit 307 and the input/output interface 113.
  • step S455 on the basis of the received reply signal mentioned above, information stored in the memory part 157 of that RFID circuit element To is checked, and it is determined using a known error detecting code (CRC code: Cyclic Redundancy Check or the like) whether or not the predetermined information transmitted as described above has been properly stored into the memory part 157.
  • CRC code Cyclic Redundancy Check or the like
  • step S437 the above-described flag F is set as F - 1, and this routine is ended. In this way, even when the writing of information is unsuccessful, retry is performed up to 5 times.
  • step S470 a control signal is output to the transmitting circuit 306, and a carrier wave on which predetermined modulation has been performed is transmitted as a "Lock" command via the loop antenna LC to the RFID circuit element To to which information is to be written, thereby prohibiting additional writing of information to that RFID circuit element To. This completes the writing of RFID tag information to the RFID circuit element To to which writing is to be performed.
  • step S480 a combination of the information written to the RFID circuit element To in step S440 mentioned above, and the print information of the label print R that has already been printed in the print area S by the print head 23 in correspondence with the above-mentioned information, is output via the input/output interface 113 and the communication network NW and stored into the information server IS or the route server RS.
  • this storage data is stored and retained in the database of each of the servers IS and RS, for example, so that it can be referenced by the PC 118 as required. In this way, this routine is ended.
  • Fig. 35 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step S500 described above with reference to Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • step S510 of the flow shown in Fig. 35 it is determined whether or not there is a preset predetermined distance or more between the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 set in step S135 mentioned above, and the position of the cutting line CL set in step S140 mentioned above. This determination is not satisfied if the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 and the position of the cutting line CL are too close to each other, and it is regarded inappropriate to provide the rear half-cut line HC2 separately from the cutting line CL, so this routine is ended. On the other hand, this determination is satisfied if the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 and the position of the cutting line CL are sufficiently far from each other, and the process transfers to step S520.
  • step S510 mentioned above is a procedure aimed at, for example, preventing the label from peeling at the time of full-cutting by the cutting mechanism 15 because the positions of the cutting line CL and rear half-cut line HC2 are too close to each other, or for preventing the peeled tape from sticking to the movable blade 41 of the cutting mechanism 15 or the like to cause a glitch in the operation of the device.
  • step S520 in the same manner as in step S20, it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described rear half-cut position (in other words, whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has reached the position where the half-cutter 34 of the half-cut mechanism 35 directly faces the rear half-cut line HC2 calculated in step S135).
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above (such as by counting the number of pulses output by the feed-motor drive circuit 121 for driving the feed motor 119 that is a pulse motor).
  • the determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the rear half-cut position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the rear half-cut position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S530.
  • step S530 in the same manner as in step S50 or the like described above, a control signal is output to the feed-motor drive circuit 121 and the tape-discharging-motor drive circuit 123 via the input/output interface 113, and the drives of the feed motor 119 and tape discharging motor 65 are stopped, thus stopping the rotations of the tape feed roller 27, ribbon take-up roller 106, and drive roller 51. Accordingly, in the state with the half-cutter 34 of the half-cut mechanism 35 directly facing the rear half-cut line HC2 calculated in step S135, the paying out of the base tape 101 from the first roll 102, the paying out of the cover film 103 from the second roll 104, and the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print stop.
  • step S540 a control signal is output to the half-cutter motor drive circuit 128 to pivot the half-cutter 34, thereby performing rear half-cutting processing of cutting the cover film 103, adhesive layer 101a, base film 101b, and adhesive layer 101c of the tag label tape 109 with print to form the rear half-cut line HC2 (see Fig. 21I or 24I ).
  • step S550 the process transfers to step S550 where, in the same manner as in step S35 mentioned above, the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51 are rotationally driven to resume the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print, and this routine is ended.
  • Fig. 36 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step S600 described above with reference to Fig. 32 or 33 .
  • step S620 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described margin printing start position (calculated in step S165 of Fig. 31 mentioned above).
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above.
  • the determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the margin printing start position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the margin printing start position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S640.
  • step S640 in the same manner as described above, the printing of the finished print number R1 is started by energizing the print head 23 (see Fig. 21J or 24J ).
  • step S660 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described margin printing end position (substantially set in steps S160 and S165 of Fig. 31 mentioned above).
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the margin printing end position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the margin printing end position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S680.
  • step S680 in the same manner as in step S260 described above, the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to stop the printing of the remaining-number information R. The printing of the remaining-number information R with respect to the front margin area S1 is thus completed, and this routine is ended.
  • Fig. 37 is a flowchart showing step S700A as an example of the detailed procedure of step S700 shown in Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • error processing (1) is executed in correspondence with this to perform printing of the above-mentioned other form of print R' indicative of the communication error.
  • step S701 of the flow shown in Fig. 37 print data corresponding to the other form of print R' (the letter string "NG" in the example of Fig. 26 or Fig. 28 described above) printed at the time of the above-mentioned communication error is created.
  • the content of the other form of print R' may be fixedly stored in advance in a suitable location of the control circuit 110, or may be designated or selected by the operator through the operation signal input in step S105.
  • step S701 on the basis of these, the creation of printing data is executed.
  • step S702 the position on the tape where the printing of the other form of print R' corresponding to the above-mentioned communication error is performed is set.
  • the printing completion position in accordance with the content of the other from of print R' set in step S701 mentioned above, the setting is performed in correspondence with the print length thereof or the like.
  • step S703 the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51 are rotationally driven to resume the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • step S704 it is determined whether or not the error printing start position set in step S702 has been reached.
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the error printing start position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the error printing start position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S704. It should be noted that in the above-described example, if the error printing start position is set so that error printing is started immediately after the communication position, the determination of step S704 is satisfied immediately after resuming the feeding in step S703.
  • step S705 in the same manner as in step S240 of Fig. 32 , the print head 23 is energized to start the printing of the other form of print R' (see Fig. 26F or 28G ).
  • step S706 it is determined whether or not the error printing completion position set in step S702 has been reached.
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed in the same manner as in step S250 of Fig. 32 or the like. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the error printing completion position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the error printing completion position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S707.
  • step S707 in the same manner as in step S260 of Fig. 32 , the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to stop the printing of the above-mentioned other form of print R'. This completes the printing of the other form of print R' on the label rear-end side of the print area S (see Fig. 26G' or 28H' ).
  • Fig. 38 is a flowchart showing step S700B as another example of the detailed procedure of step S700 shown in Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • step S700B is a flowchart showing step S700B as another example of the detailed procedure of step S700 shown in Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • step S700B is a flowchart showing step S700B as another example of the detailed procedure of step S700 shown in Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • Steps S711, S712 of the flow shown in Fig. 38 are the same as steps S701, S702 of Fig. 37 mentioned above, respectively.
  • steps S711, S712 printing data of the other form of print R' to be printed at the time of the communication error mentioned above is created, and the position on the tape where the other form of print R' is printed is set.
  • step S713 the cutting position of the RFID circuit element To with the half-cutter 34 mentioned above is set.
  • this position setting for example, since the location of the RFID circuit element To from the front end to the rear end on the tape is known from steps S125 and S145 of Fig. 31 described above, the position setting is performed to determine which position within the above-mentioned location (for example, a position at a predetermined distance from the front end of the RFID circuit element To) is to be cut by the half-cutter 34.
  • this position setting may be previously stored fixedly in a suitable location of the control circuit 110 (for example, always at the central portion of the RFID circuit element To with respect to the tape length direction or at the 1/4 length position), or may be designated or selected by the operator through the operation signal input in step S105 described above.
  • step S714 the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51 are rotationally driven to resume the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • steps S715, S716, S717, S718 are executed. That is, in step S715, it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the tag-cutting half-cut position set in step S713 mentioned above. In case the determination is satisfied, in step S716, the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped (in this state, the half-cutter 34 directly faces some location of the RFID circuit element To), and in step S717, a control signal is output to the half-cutter motor drive circuit 128 to pivot the half-cutter 34, thereby cutting some location of the RFID circuit element To. In step S718, the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is resumed.
  • steps S720, 721, 722 after step S719 are the same as steps S704, S705, S706, S707 of Fig. 37 mentioned above, the description thereof is omitted.
  • Fig. 39 is a flowchart showing step S700C as still another example of the detailed procedure of step S700 shown in Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • step S700C is a flowchart showing step S700C as still another example of the detailed procedure of step S700 shown in Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • step S700C is a flowchart showing step S700C as still another example of the detailed procedure of step S700 shown in Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • step S733 corresponding to step S713
  • step S735 it is determined whether or not the full-cut position thus set has been reached, and if the full-cut position has been reached, in step S737 (corresponding to step S717), the movable blade 41 is driven by the cutter motor 43 to thereby perform cutting of the RFID circuit element To.
  • step S737 corresponding to step S717
  • Fig. 40 is a flowchart showing step S700D as yet still another example of the detailed procedure of step S700 shown in Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • step S700D is a flowchart showing step S700D as yet still another example of the detailed procedure of step S700 shown in Figs. 32 and 33 .
  • the printing of the other form of print R' as described above is not performed but error processing (4) is executed instead, in which an RFID label T that is longer than usual is produced as an exceptional case to make the operator recognize the error.
  • step S751 of the flow shown in Fig. 40 in order to produce an RFID label T that is longer than usual at the time of the communication error mentioned above, the full-cut position (the position of the cutting line CL on the tape where cutting is performed by the movable blade 41 of the cutting mechanism 15) once set in step S140 of Fig. 31 is reset.
  • the position of the cutting line CL is largely offset to the tape rear-end side with respect to the position set in step S140 mentioned above.
  • step S752 in the same manner as in step S703 or the like, the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51 are rotationally driven to resume the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print, and this routine is ended.
  • the predetermined label print R is printed by the print head 23 with respect to the print area S of the cover film 103, and the tag label tape 109 with print of a laminate structure including three layers consisting of the cover film 103, the adhesive layer 101c, and the separation sheet 101d covering the adhesive layer 101c is fed, and this tag label tape 109 with print is cut by the cutting mechanism 15 into a predetermined length to thereby produce the RFID label T.
  • step S300 it is determined which one of the following two events, the arrival of the RFID circuit element To of the tag label tape 109 with print at the communication position with the antenna LC, and the completion of printing onto the print area S by the print head 23, chronologically precedes the other. Then, in accordance with the result of this determination, in case it is determined that the completion of printing with respect to the print area S takes place first, in the processing of producing a short print label in step S300, the feeding is stopped upon arrival at the above-mentioned communication position (step S340), and after performing transmission/reception of information via the loop antenna LC (step S400), the feeding is resumed (step S360).
  • step S40 in case it is determined in step S40 that the arrival at the communication position takes place first, in the processing of producing a long print label in step S200, the feeding and printing are stopped upon arrival at the above-mentioned communication position (step S220), and after performing transmission/reception of information via the loop antenna LC (step S400), the feeding and the printing onto the print area S are resumed (step S240).
  • the subsequent operations are switch-controlled, thereby allowing finely coordinated control to be performed easily and quickly in such a manner that if it is possible and better to reflect the results of information transmission/reception, the success or failure of which has been determined in step S230 of Fig. 32 or step S35 of Fig. 33 , on the printing, the results are reflected (see step S700 in Fig. 32 or 33 ), and if it is unnecessary and impossible to reflect the results on the printing, the results are not reflected (see the steps from step S240 of Fig. 32 onward, or the steps from step S360 of Fig. 33 onward).
  • step S700 performing printing corresponding to the failure in step S700A, performing cutting of the RFID circuit element in step S700B or step S700C, or changing the length of the RFID label T in step S700D
  • step S40 determines that the printing with respect to the print area S takes place first, in the processing of producing a short label print in step S300, the RFID label T can be produced quickly without performing the needless control of driving the print head 23 again after the arrival at the communication position.
  • the layers other than the separation sheet 101d are cut by the half-cut unit 35 to thereby form the front and rear half-cut lines HCl, HC2. Accordingly, when peeling off the separation sheet 101d from the other layers (the label main body 103, 101a to 101c) in order to affix the produced RFID label T onto a target affixing object, the separation sheet 101d can be easily peeled off with the fingertips.
  • the length of the label main body 103, 101a to 101c (corresponding to the print length) to be actually peeled off and affixed can be regulated on the basis of the positions of the front and rear half-cut lines HC1, HC2, the length of a single RFID label T (in other words, the lengths of the tag label tape 109 with print, base tape 101, and cover film 103 used for one label production) can be made constant at all times irrespective of the length of the above-mentioned label main body 103, 101a to 101c to be affixed.
  • step S700A since a label tape for which transmission/reception of information has failed cannot be used as a label, in this embodiment, in particular, as described above with reference to step S700A, for example, rather than forming the half-cut lines HC1, HC2 by the half-cut unit 35, which is normally performed at both end portions of the tape, only the half-cut line HC1 is formed, and the formation of the half-cut line HC2 is omitted without performing cutting, whereby unnecessary cutting operation by the half-cutter 34 can be eliminated to simplify the control. This also proves advantageous in that the absence of the half-cut line HC2 can make it visually clear to the operator that the label has failed in transmission/reception.
  • Fig. 41 is a functional block diagram showing the control system ot the tag-label producing device according to this embodiment.
  • the control circuit 110 of the tag-label producing device 1 according to this embodiment includes a storage device 200 consisting of, for example, a large-capacity hard disk having non-volatility or the like.
  • the storage device 200 has a built-in database 201 in which employee information, merchandise information, customer information, and so on are registered. In this case, it is not necessary to provide a database in the information server IS as in the first embodiment described above.
  • Fig. 42 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 30 described above, showing the procedure of control executed by the control circuit 110 in this embodiment.
  • step S90 is newly added first, and after step S60, steps S61 to S66 are newly added. Further, as for steps S100, S200, and S300 as well, their detailed procedures are partially modified as steps S101, S201, and S301, respectively.
  • step S90 the appearance image of the RFID label T is registered into the database 201 of the storage device 200.
  • the corresponding database reference command signal is sent to the control circuit 110, and the data record (group) of data already registered in the database 201 is extracted from the storage device 200 and displayed in, for example, a list form on suitable display device of the PC 118.
  • the operator looks at the reference data thus displayed, and performs selection of data (selection and input via the above-mentioned operation device) necessary for the issuing of the RFID label T or the like.
  • the image of the outward appearance (print form) of the RFID label T to be issued is created and displayed on the above-mentioned display device of the PC 118.
  • the appearance image data of the RFID label T is stored and retained in the database 201 while being associated with information data or the like of the RFID label T or tag ID.
  • step S101 preparatory processing (for details, see Fig. 43 that will be described later) is executed.
  • the operation signal from the above-mentioned PC 118 is input (via the communication line NW and the input/output interface 113), and on the basis of this operation signal, setting of print data or communication data with the RFID element To, or the like is performed.
  • steps S5 to S40 are carried out in order.
  • the determination of step S40 mentioned above is satisfied, and the process transfers to step S201 where the processing of producing a long print label (for details, see Fig. 44 that will be described later) is performed.
  • the determination of step S40 mentioned above is not satisfied, and the process transfers to step S301 where the processing of producing a short print label (for details, see Fig. 45 that will be described later) is performed.
  • a flag details of which will be described later
  • step S62 a successful communication signal indicative of the success of the communication with respect to the RFID circuit element To is sent out to the above-mentioned PC 118 via the input/output interface 113 and the communication line NW, and this flow is ended.
  • step S65 re-preparation processing (for details, see Fig. 46 that will be described later) of performing the setting of the print data or communication data with the RFID circuit element To or the like again is executed.
  • step S66 since it is known that attempts at communication with three RFID circuit elements To have failed consecutively in succession, an error notification signal is sent out to the above-mentioned PC 118 via the input/output interface 113 and the communication line NW, and this routine is ended. In this way, even when transmission/reception of information is unsuccessful, transmission/reception of substantially the same information is tried with respect to different RFID circuit elements up to three RFID circuit elements (three times).
  • the number of times is not particularly limited to three.
  • Fig. 43 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 31 described above, showing the detailed procedure of step S101 mentioned above.
  • step S171 instead of step S170 in Fig. 31 , step S171 corresponding to this is provided.
  • Fig. 44 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 32 described above, showing the detailed procedure of step S201 mentioned above.
  • step S235 is newly provided before the error processing of step S700 in Fig. 32
  • step S236 is newly provided after the error processing of step S700.
  • step S700A shown in Fig. 37 is employed as an example representing the error processing of step S700.
  • step S235 in the same manner as in step S405 of Fig. 34 , as an "Erase" signal for initializing information stored in the memory part 157 of the RFID circuit element To, a carrier wave on which predetermined modulation has been performed is transmitted via the loop antenna LC to the RFID circuit element To to which information is to be written.
  • the memory part 157 of the RFID circuit element To is thus initialized.
  • step S700A the process transfers to step S236.
  • Fig. 45 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 33 described above, showing the detailed procedure of step S301 mentioned above.
  • step S355 is newly provided before the error processing of step S700 in Fig. 33
  • step S356 is newly provided after the error processing of step S700.
  • step S700A shown in Fig. 37 is employed as an example representing the error processing of step S700.
  • Fig. 46 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of "re-preparation processing" in step S65 mentioned above.
  • Step S65 is similar to the procedure of the "preparatory processing” in Fig. 43 described above, and differs from the processing of Fig. 43 only in that step S105 is omitted.
  • the RFID label T in addition to the effects similar to those of the above-mentioned first embodiment, even when the RFID label T is produced in the state where transmission/reception of information with respect to one RFID circuit element To has failed, after discharging this RFID label T, information that is substantially the same as the information of which transmission/reception has failed as described above, is transmitted/received to/from another RFID circuit element To arranged on the trailing side in the feed direction with respect to the RFID circuit element To, thereby producing another RFID label T. Accordingly, even when the transmission/reception of information has failed, the RFID label T can be automatically produced again without any additional operation by the operator, thereby making it possible to reduce the burden on the operator.
  • the present invention is also adapted to the successive batch production of a plurality of RFID labels.
  • the members or functions (control processing procedures) that are identical or equivalent to those of the two embodiments described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.
  • Fig. 47 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 42 described above, showing the procedure of control executed by the control circuit 110 according to this embodiment.
  • steps S91, S92 are newly added before step S90 of Fig. 42
  • steps S67, S68 are newly provided after step S62 or S66.
  • step S91 the number of RFID labels T (designated label production number) x to be produced, which is input by the operator via suitable operation device of the PC 118, is input via the input/output interface 113.
  • the designated label production number x is plural, it means that a plurality of RFID labels T have been successively produced. Further, if transmission/reception of information has failed in a given RFID label T, in the same manner as described above (without counting the number of such RFID labels T in step 68, that have failed in transmission/reception), the communication is retried and the production of new RFID labels T is tried using succeeding RFID circuit elements To; if the transmission/reception of information has succeeded within three tries, the number of RFID labels T that have succeeded in communication is counted in step S68, and the process returns to step S101 to repeat the processing. Accordingly, the RFID labels T are produced so that the number of RFID labels T that have finally succeeded in communication is made as close as possible to the number x as designated in step S91.
  • steps S91, S92, S67, S68 of Fig. 47 each correspond to successive production controlling portion for coordinately controlling the feeding device, the printing device, the communication device, and the discharge device so as to produce a plurality of RFID labels each including the RFID circuit element at once.
  • the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print and the printing with the print head 23 are temporarily interrupted prior to the completion of printing by the print head 23. If, upon thus stopping the feeding, the print head 23 is not being stopped at a non-printing blank portion (white line) located between the print letters or print patterns in the print area S, drive control may be performed so that the print head 23 is stopped at that portion.
  • Fig. 48 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 32 or 44 described above, showing the procedure of the processing of producing a long print label executed by the control circuit 110 according to this modification.
  • the procedures that are equivalent to those of Fig. 32 are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.
  • step S205 is newly added before, step S210 described above, and steps S221, S222, S223, S224, and S225 are newly provided between steps S210 and S220 described above.
  • step S221 it is determined whether or not the print head 23 is at the position of the white line. This determination may be made by calculating, on the basis of the print data created in step S110 of Fig. 31 described above, for example, whether the position on the tape in the feed direction at which the print head 23 is being stopped corresponds to the actual printing portion (non-blank portion) for the print letters or print patterns included in the print data or the non-printing blank portion (white line).
  • step S220 the rotations of the tape feed roller 27, ribbon take-up roller 106, and drive roller 51 are stopped, and feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped in the state with the loop antenna LC substantially directly facing the RFID circuit element To. Further, the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to thereby stop (interrupt) the printing of the label print R.
  • step S221 determines whether or not the print head 23 is located on the white line (if the print head 23 is located in the actual printing portion mentioned above).
  • step S224 in order to stop the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print after the position of the print head 23 has become the position of the white line, the feeding and printing are further continued for a minute amount of time (Specifically, it suffices to retain the feeding/printing state as it is for a predetermined minute amount of time using a timer or the like, for example.
  • the minute amount of time may be fixed or variable). Thereafter, the process returns to step S221 described above.
  • step S231 and step S232 that branches off from step S231 are newly added between steps S230 and S240.
  • step S230 After it is determined in step S230 whether or not transmission/reception of information has succeeded in step S400 mentioned above, the process transfers to step S
  • step S232 in correspondence with step S224 mentioned above, feeding (return-feeding) of the tag label tape with print is performed by a minute distance in the direction reverse to the previous feed direction.
  • a control signal is output to the feed-motor drive circuit 121 via the input/output interface 113, and the tape feed roller 27 and the ribbon take-up roller 106 are rotationally driven by the driving force of the feed motor 121 in the direction reverse to the forward direction corresponding to the feed direction; further, a control signal is output to the tape discharging motor 65 via the tape-discharging-motor drive circuit 123, the drive roller 51 is rotationally driven in the same reverse direction as mentioned above, and the tag label tape 109 with print is return-fed by a predetermined minute distance (for example, a distance equivalent to several dots in the printing operation with the print head 23) in the direction reverse to the forward direction that is the feed direction.
  • a predetermined minute distance for example, a distance equivalent to several dots in the printing operation with the print head 23
  • the printing content of the print data is also returned by a distance corresponding to the returned distance. Accordingly, upon resuming printing thereafter, the printing can be resumed in a manner with a slight overlap with the print that has been already done in the print area S. Thereafter, the process transfers to step S240, after which the same procedures as those of Fig. 32 are executed.
  • steps S221 to S225 mentioned above when the print head 23 is not at the position of the white line, the feeding/printing is continued in the forward direction as it is so that the print head 23 comes to the position of the white line.
  • this should not be construed restrictively; it is also possible to perform feeding (return-feeding) by a predetermined minute distance from that point in the reverse direction (meanwhile, for example, printing is interrupted) to thereby bring the print head 23 to the position of the white line.
  • step S232 mentioned above the printing and feeding may be resumed anew from a position returned by a minute distance from the position prior to the above-mentioned return-feeding (Accordingly, as mentioned above, upon resuming the printing, the printing is resumed in a manner slightly overlapping with the print that has been already done in the print area S).
  • step S221 it is determined whether or not the printing stop position of the print head 23 corresponds to the white line, and if, at this position, the print head 23 is not on the white line but is midway through the printing of the letter portion or pattern portion, in step S224, feeding is performed to bring the print head 23 to the white line and then the feeding is stopped, and transmission/reception of information is performed in step S400, thereby making it possible to prevent fading, a blank, or the like from occurring due to the stoppage of printing mentioned above.
  • step S130 of Fig. 31 or 43 the printing end position on the tape due to the print head 23 is previously calculated prior to actually starting the printing by the print head 23, and at the time when the tag label tape 109 with print has reached the communication position after starting its feeding, a comparison is made as to whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print in that state has reached the printing end position calculated as mentioned above.
  • printing may be actually started with the print head 23 on the basis of the created print data, and at the time when the above-mentioned communication position is reached, it may be determined whether print data that has not been printed yet remains and printing is still being continued (or whether the printing of all of the print data has been completed).
  • Fig. 49 is a flowchart, corresponding to Figs. 30 , 42 , 47 mentioned above, showing the procedure of control executed by the control circuit 110 according to this modification.
  • steps S41, S42 are newly provided between step S35 and step S200 or step S300 of Fig. 30 .
  • steps S100, S200, S300 are also partially modified in their detailed procedures as steps S100', S200', S300'.
  • Fig. 50 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 31 or 43 described above, showing the detailed procedure of step S100' mentioned above.
  • steps S130 and S135 in Fig. 31 are omitted, and instead of steps S150, S155 in Fig. 31 , steps S150', S155' similar to these steps are provided.
  • step S135 and S140 the calculation of the printing end position in steps S135 and S140 and the calculation of the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 based on this calculated printing end position are not performed; once the setting of the communication position in step S125 is finished, the process transfers to the processing of setting the cutting line CL on the label rear-end side in step S140 in the same manner as in Fig. 31 , and thereafter, the setting of the rear-end side position of the RFID circuit element To in step S145 is performed in the same manner as in Fig. 31 .
  • step S150' and S155' position correction (resetting) is performed so that the postilion of the above-mentioned cutting line CL is located on the label rear-end side with respect to the rear-end position of the RFID circuit element To, and the process transfers to step S160.
  • the procedure in Fig. 50 other than the above-mentioned procedure is the same as that of Fig. 31 .
  • step S35 After forming the front half-cut line HC1, feeding/printing is resumed in step S35, and then the process transfers to step S41 that is newly provided.
  • step S41 it is determined whether or not printing by the print head 23 has finished, that is, whether print data that has not been printed yet remains and printing is still being continued, or printing of all of the print data has been completed. The determination is not satisfied until the printing is complete, and the process transfers to the next step S42.
  • step S42 in the same manner as in step S210 of Fig. 32 or step S330 of Fig. 33 described above, it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the communication position with the loop antenna LC described above (whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has substantially reached the position where the loop antenna LC substantially directly faces the position of the RFID circuit element To).
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the communication position, and the process returns to step S41 to repeat the same procedure.
  • step S41 ⁇ step S42 ⁇ step S41 ⁇ ... is repeated, and if the completion of printing has taken place first during this repetition loop, the determination of step S41 is satisfied and the process transfers to step S300', and if the arrival at the communication position has taken place first, the determination of step S42 is satisfied and the process transfers to step S200'.
  • Fig. 51 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 32 or 44 described above, showing the detailed procedure of step S200' mentioned above.
  • steps S210 and S260 in Fig. 32 are omitted, and instead of steps S250, S500 in Fig. 32 , steps S250', S500' similar to these steps are provided.
  • step S210 of Fig. 32 is not provided in Fig. 51 , so the process immediately transfers to step S220 mentioned above to stop the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print and stop the printing by the print head 23.
  • Steps S400, S230, S240 thereafter are the same as those of Fig. 32 .
  • step S240 After resuming the feeding and printing, which have been stopped as mentioned above, in step S240, the process transfers to step S250' that is newly provided.
  • step S250' it is determined whether or not printing by the print head 23 has finished, that is, whether print data that has not been printed yet remains and printing is still being continued, or printing of all of the print data has been completed. The determination is not satisfied until printing is complete and this procedure is repeated. Upon the completion of printing, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S500' (details of which will be described later), after which step S600 is executed in the same manner as mentioned above, and this routing is ended.
  • Fig. 52 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 33 or 45 described above, showing the detailed procedure of step S300' mentioned above.
  • steps S310 and S320 in Fig. 33 are omitted, and instead of step S500 in Fig. 33 , step S500' similar to this step is provided.
  • step S310, S320 of Fig. 33 are not provided in Fig. 52 , so the process immediately transfers to step S330 mentioned above to determine whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has reached the communication position.
  • Steps S340, S350, S360 thereafter are the same as those of Fig. 33 .
  • step S360 After resuming the feeding, which has been stopped in step S340 mentioned above, in step S360, the process transfers to the next step S500' (details of which will be described later), after which step S600 is executed in the same manner as mentioned above, and this routing is ended.
  • Fig. 53 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 35 described above, showing the detailed procedure of step S500' mentioned above.
  • the procedures that are equivalent to those of Fig. 35 or other flows are denoted by the same reference numerals.
  • step S135 that is the same as that of Fig. 31 according to the above-mentioned embodiment, the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 is set.
  • the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 on the tape corresponding to the above-mentioned cartridge information is set.
  • the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 on the tape is calculated by adding (intervening) the determined distance with respect to the tape feed position (or the communication position in step S330 of Fig. 52 ) at the time when the determination of step S250' mentioned above is satisfied.
  • step S520 is executed first. That is, in the same manner as described above, it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described rear half-cut position HC2. In the same manner as described above, the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above of Fig. 49 . The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the rear half-cut position HC2 and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the rear half-cut position HC2, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S510.
  • step S510 in the same manner as described above, it is determined whether or not there is a preset predetermined distance or more between the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 set in step S135 mentioned above, and the position of the cutting line CL set in step S140 of Fig. 50 .
  • This determination is not satisfied if the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 and the position of the cutting line CL are too close to each other, and it is regarded inappropriate to provide the rear half-cut line HC2 separately from the cutting line CL, so this routine is ended.
  • this determination is satisfied if the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 and the position of the cutting line CL are sufficiently far from each other, and the process transfers to the next step S150".
  • step S150 substantially the same determination as that of step S150' described above with reference to step S130 is made with respect to the half-cut line HC2. That is, in step S150”, with respect to the rear half-cut line HC2 calculated in step S135 mentioned above, it is determined whether or not the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 is located on the label rear-end side with respect to the rear-end position of the RFID circuit element To. In case the determination is not satisfied, in step S155", position correction (resetting) is performed so that the position of the above-mentioned half-cut line HC2 is located on the label rear-end side with respect to the rear-end position of the RFID circuit element To, and the process transfers to step S530.
  • step S530 onward Since the procedure from step S530 onward is the same as that of Fig. 35 described above, description thereof is omitted.
  • steps S42 and S41 shown in Fig. 49 it is determined which one of the following two events, the arrival of the RFID circuit element To of the tag label tape 109 with print at the communication position with the antenna LC, and the completion of printing onto the print area S by the print head 23, chronologically precedes the other.
  • step S300' in case it is determined that the completion of printing with respect to the print area S takes place first, in the processing of producing a short print label in step S300', the feeding is stopped upon arrival at the above-mentioned communication position (step S340), and after performing transmission/reception of information via the loop antenna LC (step S400), the feeding is resumed (step S360).
  • step S42 in case it is determined in step S42 that the arrival at the communication position takes place first, in the processing of producing a long print label in step S200', the feeding and printing are stopped upon arrival at the above-mentioned communication position (step S220), and after performing transmission/reception of information via the loop antenna LC (step S400), the feeding and the printing onto the print area S are resumed (step S240).
  • the subsequent operations are switched, thereby allowing finely coordinated control to be performed easily and quickly in such a manner that if it is possible and better to reflect the results of information transmission/reception, the success or failure of which has been determined in step S230 of Fig. 51 or step S35 of Fig. 52 , on the printing, the results are reflected (see step S700 in Fig. 51 or 52 ), and if it is unnecessary and impossible to reflect the results on the printing, the results are not reflected (see the steps from step S240 of Fig. 51 onward, or the steps from step S360 of Fig. 52 onward). As a result, the convenience of the operator can be enhanced.
  • Fig. 54 is a plan view, corresponding to Fig. 4 described above, showing the detailed construction of a cartridge 7' used in a tag-label producing device according to this modification.
  • the portions that are equivalent to those of Fig. 4 or the like are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted as appropriate.
  • the cartridge 7' has a first roll 102' around which a thermal tape 101' (tag tape; tag medium) is wound, and a tape feed roller 27' for feeding the thermal tape 101' toward the outside of the cartridge 7'.
  • a thermal tape 101' tag tape; tag medium
  • the above-mentioned thermal tape 101' which is transparent and in a band shape and has a plurality of the RFID circuit elements To successively formed in the longitudinal direction thereof, is wound around a reel member 102a'.
  • the reel member 102a' is rotatably fitted and accommodated in a boss 95 provided upright on the bottom surface of the cartridge 7'.
  • the thermal tape 101' wound around the first roll 102' is of a three-layer structure in this example (see the partially enlarged view in Fig. 54 ).
  • the thermal tape 101' includes a cover film 101a' (base layer) made of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or the like having a thermal recording layer on its surface, an adhesive layer 101b' (adhesive layer) made of a suitable adhesive material, and a separation sheet 101c' (separation material layer), which are laminated in the stated order from the side wound on the inner side toward the side opposite thereto.
  • the loop antenna 152 (tag-side loop antenna) that is formed in a loop coil-like configuration and performs transmission/reception of information is provided integrally in this example, with the IC circuit part 151 being formed so as to connect to the loop antenna 152.
  • These components constitute each RFID circuit element To.
  • the separation sheet 101c' is adhered onto the cover film 101a' by means of the adhesive layer 101b'. Further, on the surface of the separation sheet 101c', like the separation sheet 101d, the predetermined identifier for feed control (which in this example is a black-painted identifier.
  • this may also be a hole bored by laser machining or the like so as to substantially penetrate the thermal tape 101', or the like) PM is provided at a predetermined position corresponding to each RFID circuit element To (which in this example is a position located on the side further forward with respect to the leading end of the antenna 152 located on the forward side in the feed direction).
  • the thermal tape 101' is held between the print head 23 and the platen roller 26, and between the tape feed roller 27' and a pressure roller 28'. Then, the tape feed roller 27', the pressure roller 28', and the platen roller 26 are rotated in synchronization with each other, and the thermal tape 101' is paid out from the first roll 102'.
  • the thermal tape 101' thus paid out is supplied to the print head 23 on the downstream side in the feed direction from an opening 94 while being guided by a substantially cylindrical reel 92 rotatably fitted in a reel boss 91 provided upright on the bottom surface of the cartridge.
  • the plurality of heater elements of the print head 23 are energized by the print-head drive circuit 120 (see Fig. 15 ), and the label print R is thus printed on the front surface of the cover film 101'a of the thermal tape 101' to form a tag label tape 109' with print, which is then carried to the outside of the cartridge 7' from a discharge port 96.
  • the half-cut unit 35 used is different from the one illustrated in Fig. 10 or the like corresponding to the so-called laminate type. That is, in the structure illustrated in Fig. 10 or the like, the pad 38 is located on the print head 23 side, and the half-cutter 34 is located on the platen roller 26 side. This structure is employed in order to perform half-cut from the surface on the side opposite to the separation sheet of the tape produced. However, in the case where a thermal tape is used as in this modification (the same applies to the type that will be described later with reference to Fig. 55 , in which no lamination is performed and an ink ribbon is used), the separation sheet is located on the side opposite to that in the case of the above-mentioned laminate type.
  • the placement of the pad 38 and the half-cutter 34 is reversed. That is, the half-cutter 34 is located on the print head 23 side, and the pad 38 is located on the platen roller 26 side.
  • a cartridge RFID circuit element Tc in which information relating to the cartridge 7' is previously stored, is disposed on an outer peripheral side wall surface 93 of the cartridge 7'. Further, an antenna AT for performing transmission/reception of information to/from the RFID circuit element Tc via non-contact wireless communication is provided to a side wall portion 6A of the cartridge holder 6 opposed to the above-mentioned RFID circuit element Tc.
  • the distance L in the thermal tape 101' from the leading end position of the identifier PM in the tape feed direction to the leading end of the RFID circuit element To in the tape feed direction is set in advance so to be equal to the distance Lo in the tape feed direction between the mark sensor 127 and the print head 23.
  • printing is performed solely with the heat generated by the print head 23 without particularly using an ink ribbon or the like.
  • this should not be construed restrictively.
  • printing may also be performed using an ordinary ink ribbon.
  • Fig. 55 is a plan view, corresponding to Fig. 54 or Fig. 4 described above, showing the detailed construction of a cartridge 7" used in a tag-label producing device according to such a modification.
  • the portions that are equivalent to those of Fig. 54 , Fig. 4 , or the like are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted as appropriate.
  • the cartridge 7" according to this modification has a first roll 102" around which a base tape 101" (tag tape; tag medium) is wound.
  • the above-mentioned base tape 101 which is transparent and in a band shape and has a plurality of the RFID circuit elements To successively formed in the longitudinal direction thereof, is wound around a reel member 102a”.
  • the base tape 101" wound around the first roll 102" is of a three-layer structure in this example (see the partially enlarged view in Fig. 55 ).
  • the base tape 101' includes a colored base film 101a" (base layer) made of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or the like, an adhesive layer 101b" (adhesive layer) made of a suitable adhesive material, and a separation sheet 101c" (separation material layer), which are laminated in the stated order from the side wound on the inner side toward the side opposite thereto.
  • the loop antenna 152 (tag-side loop antenna) that is formed in a loop coil-like configuration and performs transmission/reception of information is provided integrally in this example, with the IC circuit part 151 being formed so as to connect to the loop antenna 152.
  • These components constitute each RFID circuit element To.
  • the separation sheet 101c is adhered onto the base film 101a" by means of the adhesive layer 101b". Further, in the same manner as described above, on the surface of the separation sheet 101c", the predetermined identifier for feed control (which in this example is a black-painted identifier.
  • this may also be a hole bored by laser machining or the like so as to substantially penetrate the base tape 101", or the like) PM is provided at a predetermined position corresponding to each RFID circuit element To (which in this example is a position located on the side further forward with respect to the leading end of the antenna 152 located on the forward side in the feed direction).
  • the base tape 101" and the ink ribbon 105 are held between the print head 23 and the platen roller 26, and between the tape feed roller 27' and the pressure roller 28'. Then, the tape feed roller 27', the pressure roller 28', and the platen roller 26 are rotated in synchronization with each other, whereby the base tape 101" is paid out from the first roll 102".
  • the plurality of heater elements of the print head 23 are energized by the print-head drive circuit 120 (see Fig. 15 ), and the label print R corresponding to information stored in the RFID circuit element To is thus printed on the front surface of the base film 101"a of the base tape 101" to form a tag label tape 109" with print, which is then carried to the outside of the cartridge 7".
  • the distance L in the base tape 101" from the leading end position of the identifier PM in the tape feed direction to the leading end of the RFID circuit element To in the tape feed direction is set in advance so to be equal to the distance Lo in the tape feed direction between the mark sensor 127 and the print head 23.
  • the tape-feed-roller drive shaft 108 is provided, and the tag label tape 109 with print as the tag medium or the cover film 103 as the print-receiving medium is driven by the tape-feed-roller drive shaft 108, thereby imparting relative movement between the tag label tape 109 with print or cover film 103 and the print head 23 or loop antenna LC that is fixedly installed.
  • the print head 23 (together with the loop antenna LC) may be driven by a predetermined moving mechanism, thereby imparting relative movement between the print head 23 and a tag medium having a sheet-like shape or a print-receiving medium, for example.
  • the same effects as those described above are attained.
  • the present invention may be applied to a label producing device for producing an ordinary print label not equipped with the RFID circuit element To and to a print label produced by using such a label-producing device.
  • the loop antenna LC, the transmitting circuit 306, and the receiving circuit 307 can be omitted in the label producing device 1, and on the label side as well, the RFID circuit element To become unnecessary.
  • a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figs. 56 to 69 . According to this embodiment, information on the remaining number of RFID circuit elements To in the cartridge is displayed.
  • Fig. 56 is a perspective view, corresponding to Fig. 2 described above, showing the overall construction of a tag-label producing device 1' according to this embodiment.
  • a remaining-number display portion 9 which displays number-count information (which in this example is remaining-number information, details of which will be described later) indicating the number of RFID labels T (in other words, the number of RFID circuit elements To) remaining in the cartridge 7, is provided on the left side of the label discharge port 11 in an upper portion of the side wall 10. Further, the opening/closing of the open/close cover 3 is detected by an open/close sensor 390 (see Fig. 57 that will be described later) for detecting the on/off operation on the open/close button 4.
  • Fig. 57 is a functional block diagram, corresponding to Fig. 15 described above, showing the control system of the tag-label producing device 1' according to this embodiment.
  • the remaining-number display portion 9 for displaying the remaining number of RFID circuit elements To (RFID labels T) in the RFID cartridge 7 loaded onto the main body 2
  • the RAM 117 is provided with a remaining-number memory 117F.
  • the remaining-number memory 117F information on the number of tag labels T that can be produced with the RFID cartridge 7 loaded onto the holder 6 (in other words, information on the remaining number of RFID circuit elements To in the cartridge 7) is stored in a re-writable manner.
  • the above-mentioned number-count-related information (which in this example is the sequential-order information as described above; this may also be remaining-number information or usage-number information) relating to the number of circuit elements To in the cartridge 7 is stored in the memory part 157 (see above-described Fig. 17 ) provided in the IC circuit part 151 of each RFID circuit element To equipped in the base tape 101.
  • sequential-order information is stored as the number-count-related information.
  • This sequential-order information refers to information indicating how-manieth circuit element To the circuit element To in question is out of the total number of circuit elements To equipped in the base tape 101 of a new RFID cartridge 7 with which no RFID label T has been produced yet, for example, information indicating that the circuit element To in question is the third (3/50) one out of a total of 50 circuit elements To.
  • the above-mentioned remaining-number information as number-count information is calculated by computation from the sequential-order information in the above-mentioned memory part 157 and stored into the remaining-number memory 117F.
  • remaining-number information or usage-number information itself is stored (as number-count-related information) in the memory part 157, this may be stored as number-count information in a number-count memory (remaining-number memory 117F) as it is.
  • Figs. 58A and 58B are views each showing an example of the outward appearance of the RFID label T formed after writing (or reading) of information to the RFID circuit element To and cutting of the tag label tape 109 with print are completed by means of the tag-label producing device 1' configured as described above.
  • Fig. 58A is a top view
  • Fig. 58B is a bottom view.
  • the RFID label T is of a five-layer structure including the cover film 103.
  • a plurality of RFID labels T are sequentially produced from the tag label tape 109 with print obtained by bonding the base tape 101 and the cover film 103 together.
  • suitable letter information R1 indicating logos such as the brand name of the RFID label T or messages such as "Handle with care” is printed onto the front margin area S1 of the cover film 103 of each RFID label T (This letter information R1 may not be printed).
  • Figs. 59A to 59K are explanatory views each showing the positional relation between the identifier PM, RFID circuit element To, and print area S for label print R of the tag label tape 109 with print that is continuously paid out, and the loop antenna LC, the mark sensor 127, the half-cut unit 35, the cutting mechanism 15, and the print head 23.
  • the distance L in the base tape 101 from the leading end position of the identifier PM in the tape feed direction to the leading end of the RFID circuit element To in the tape feed direction is set in advance so to be equal to the distance Lo in the tape feed direction between the mark sensor 127 and the print head 23.
  • FIG. 59A shows a state in which, after the base tape 101 paid out from the first roll 102 of the cartridge 7 and the cover film 103 paid out from the second roll 104 are bonded together by the tape feed roller 27 and the pressure roller 28, the leading end of the bonded tape reaches the cutting mechanism 15.
  • a tape that has been bonded but for which printing has not been performed yet by the print head 23 onto the cover film 103 will herein be also referred to as the tag label tape 109 with print.
  • the beginning of the tag label tape 109 with print is being fed, and the identifier PM has not been detected by the mark sensor 127.
  • the feeding is resumed, and as the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print further proceeds from the state shown in Fig. 59D mentioned above (see Fig. 59E similar to Fig. 21E described above), the RFID circuit element To reaches the position of the loop antenna LC (see Fig. 59F similar to Fig. 21F described above). Since not all of the printing in the print area S has been finished at this point, in the same manner as described above, the feeding and printing of the tag label tape 109 with print are temporarily stopped (interrupted), and writing of information is performed in the feeding stopped state through wireless communication with the RFID circuit element To by means of the loop antenna LC.
  • the above-mentioned RFID circuit element To at this time is the first one of the RFID circuit elements of the tag label tape 109 with print
  • reading of sequential-order information for example, 1/50 indicating that the RFID circuit element To in question is the first one out of the total of 50 RFID circuit elements in the cartridge
  • step S2065 that will be described later
  • the value Q + 1 that is, 50 in this example
  • the feeding and printing are resumed (see Fig. 59G similar to Fig. 21G described above), and printing of all of the letters (“ABCDEFGHIJKLMN") is finally completed (see Fig. 59H similar to Fig. 21H described above).
  • the position of the rear half-cut line HC2 reaches the position of the half-cut unit 35.
  • the feeding is stopped, and the rear half-cut line HC2 is formed by means of the half-cut unit 35 ( Fig. 59I ).
  • suitable information R1 such as the logo of the brand name of the RFID circuit element To is printed in the front margin area S1 of the cover film 103. That is, as the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print further proceeds from the state shown in Fig. 59I mentioned above, the front margin area S1 of the cover film 103 corresponding to the above-mentioned next RFID label T reaches the position of the print head 23. In the same manner as described above, the detection of the arrival at this position is performed by detecting that the tag label tape 109 with print has moved by a predetermined distance from the state shown in Fig. 59B . In response to this detection, printing of the above-mentioned suitable information R1 is started with respect to the cover film 103 ( Fig. 59J ).
  • the position of the cutting line CL (cutting part) reaches the position of the cutting mechanism 15 (at this stage, the printing of the above-mentioned sequential-order information R1 has been completed).
  • the detection of the arrival at this position is also performed by detecting that the tag label tape 109 with print has moved by a predetermined distance from the state shown in Fig. 59B .
  • the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped, and cutting is performed by the cutting mechanism 15 at the cutting line CL (see Fig. 59K corresponding to Fig. 21K described above), so the first RFID label T on the leading end side is cut off from the tag label tape 109 with print, thereby forming the first RFID label T.
  • the value Q of the remaining-number information is decreased to Q - 1 (to 49 equal to 50 decreased by 1), and that value is overwritten into the remaining-number memory 117F and also that value ("49" in this example) is displayed on the remaining-number display portion 9.
  • the state of the tag label tape 109 with print from which the first RFID label T has been cut off in the manner as described above becomes the same as that shown in Fig. 59A . As it is fed, the tag label tape 109 with print advances with its leading end side provided with the identifier PM being at the front.
  • Figs. 60A to 60C illustrate processing that is performed, after the completed RFID labels T are cut off one after another from the tag label tape 109 with print as mentioned above, with respect to the trailing end portion of the tag label tape 109 with print located downstream of the last 50th RFID label T.
  • the RFID circuit element To is not provided in the base tape 101.
  • Fig. 60A as the tag label tape 109 with print, in which printing onto the last (in this example, 50th) RFID label T and writing of information into the RFID circuit element To have been finished, is fed, and the position of the preset rear-half cut line HC2 reaches the position of the half-cut unit 35 as mentioned above, the feeding of the tape 109 is stopped, and the tape 109 is subjected to rear half-cutting at the position of the line HC2 by the cutter 34 of the half-cut unit 35.
  • an indication of the tape-out condition is displayed on the screen of the PC 118 to notify the operator to that effect (the drive of the feed roller 27 or the like may be stopped as required).
  • Fig. 61 is a view, substantially corresponding to Fig. 58A described above, showing an example of the RFID label T completed in the manner as described above.
  • Fig. 61A shows the example of an RFID label T-1 that is produced for the first time (that is, the first RFID label) using a new base tape 101 and a new cover film 103.
  • Fig. 61B shows the example of another RFID label T-2 (that is, the second RFID label onward).
  • the RFID circuit element To is arranged on the center side in the tape length direction, the label print R is printed in the print area S corresponding to the RFID circuit element To, and the front margin area S1 where the identifier PM is present, and the rear margin area S2 are provided across the front and rear half cut lines HC1, HC2, respectively, from the print area S.
  • the suitable information R1 in the front margin area S1 of the RFID label T is printed with respect to the second RFID label T-2 shown in Fig. 61B onward.
  • Figs. 62A to 62K are explanatory views each showing the positional relation between the identifier PM, RFID circuit element To, and print area S for label print R of the tag label tape 109 with print that is continuously paid out, and the loop antenna LC, the mark sensor 127, the half-cut unit 35, the cutting mechanism 15, and the print head 23.
  • a relatively short string of letters alphabet letters "AMCDEFJHIJ" is printed as an example.
  • Figs. 62A to 62E are the same as Figs. 59A to 59E described above. That is, when, after the paying out of the tag label tape 109 with print is started ( Fig. 62A ), the leading end of the identifier PM reaches the position of the mark sensor 127 ( Fig. 62B ), the printing of the label print R onto the cover film 103 is started ( Fig. 62C ). After the position of the front half-cut line HC1 reaches the position of the half-cut unit 35 and the front half-cut line HCl is formed ( Fig. 62D ), the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print further proceeds ( Fig. 62E ). Since the number of letters in the label print R is relatively small in this example, the printing of the label print R ("ABCDEFGHIJ”) is completed before the RFID circuit element To reaches the position of the loop antenna LC ( Fig. 62F ).
  • the RFID circuit element To reaches the position of the loop antenna LC ( Fig. 62G ), and after wireless communication with the RFID circuit element To is performed by means of the loop antenna LC in the feeding stopped state, the feeding is resumed ( Fig. 62H ).
  • sequential-order information (1/50 or the like in the above-described example) as number-count-related information stored in that RFID circuit element To is read, and from that sequential-order information, the value Q (49 or the like) of the remaining number of the RFID circuit elements To in the cartridge 7 is computed.
  • Q + 1 that is, 50 in this example
  • Q is stored into the remaining-number memory 117F as the remaining-number information to be stored.
  • Figs. 62I to 62K are the same as those in Figs. 59I to 59K mentioned above. That is, the rear half-cut line HC2 is formed ( Fig. 62I ), printing of the suitable information R1 such as the logo of a brand name is started ( Fig. 62J ), cutting is performed at the cutting line CL ( Fig. 62K ), and the leading end side of the tag label tape 109 with print is cut off to thereby produce the RFID label T.
  • the suitable information R1 such as the logo of a brand name
  • the value Q of the remaining-number information is decreased by 1 to Q - 1 (to 49 as a value decreased by 1), and that value is overwritten into the remaining-number memory 117F and also that value ("49" in this example) is displayed on the remaining-number display portion 9.
  • Figs. 63A to 63C are views respectively corresponding to Figs. 60A to 60C .
  • the completed RFID labels T have been cut off one after another, the printing onto the last 50th RFID label T has been completed, and writing of information to the RFID circuit element To has been finished.
  • the feeding of the tape 109 is stopped, and the tape 109 is subjected to rear half-cutting at the position of the line HC2 by the cutter 34 of the half-cut unit 35.
  • the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is resumed, and as the trailing end portion of the tape 109 leading to the last RFID label T passes through the position of the print head 23, the letter string "END" as the suitable information R1 provided in rear of the identifier PM is printed at a predetermined position of the terminal end portion of the cover film 103 corresponding to the front margin area S1 in the RAID label T ( Fig. 63B ).
  • Figs. 64A and 64B are views, substantially corresponding to Figs. 61A and 61B described above in the section (A) mentioned above, each showing an example of the RFID label T completed in the manner as mentioned above.
  • the suitable information R1 in the front margin area S1 of the RFID label T is printed with respect to the second RFID label T-2 shown in Fig. 64B onward.
  • Fig. 65 is a flowchart, corresponding to Fig. 30 described above, showing the procedure of the series of controls executed by the above-mentioned control circuit 110.
  • the procedures that are equivalent to those of Fig. 30 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted or simplified as appropriate.
  • Fig. 65 differs from Fig. 30 in that steps S2001 and S2002 are provided before step S100, and that steps S2065, S2070, S2075, S2080 are provided after step S60. Further, instead of steps S200, S250, steps S2200 and S2250 corresponding to these steps are provided.
  • step S2002 it is determined whether or not the cover (open/close cover) 3 has been closed.
  • the open/close button (open/close switch) 4 When the operator presses the open/close button (open/close switch) 4 to open the cover 3 in the upper surface of the main body 2, and loads the RFID circuit element cartridge 7 onto the cartridge holder 6 inside the main body 2 and closes the cover 3, the open/close sensor 130 (see Fig. 57 ) detects that the cover 3 has been closed, and the determination of step S2002 is satisfied so step S100 described above is executed.
  • step S100 preparatory processing (which is the same as that of Fig. 28 described above) is executed.
  • an operation signal from the PC 118 (or the production start button) is input (via the communication line NW and the input/output interface 113), and on the basis of this operation signal, setting of print data or communication data with the RFID element To, or the like is performed.
  • steps S5 to S40 thereafter are the same as those of Fig. 30 , description thereof is omitted.
  • step S40 in the same manner as described above, it is determined with respect to the tag label tape 109 with print whether or not the communication position with the RFID circuit element To is reached before the printing of all of the label print R with respect to the print area S is finished (the state shown in Fig. 59F described above), or whether or not the printing of all of the label print R with respect to the print area S is finished before the communication position with the RFID circuit element To is reached (the state shown in Fig. 62G described above).
  • step S40 mentioned above the determination of step S40 mentioned above is satisfied, and the process transfers to step S2200 similar to that described above, where the processing of producing a long print label is performed (for details, see Fig. 66 that will be described later). That is, once the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the communication position with the RFID circuit element To, the feeding and printing are stopped to perform transmission/reception of information.
  • the sequential-order information stored in the RFID circuit element To is read, and the value Q of the remaining number of RFID circuit elements To in the cartridge 7 is computed; thereafter, feeding and printing are resumed to complete the printing, and after the feeding is further continued and then stopped at the rear half-cut position to form the rear half-cut line HC2, printing (margin printing) of the suitable information R1 such as the logo of a brand name is performed.
  • step S40 mentioned above the determination of step S40 mentioned above is not satisfied, and the process transfers to step S2250 where the processing of producing a short print label is performed (for details, see Fig. 67 that will be described later). That is, after the feeding and printing are continued as they are to complete the printing first, the feeding is further continued; upon arrival at the communication position with the RFID circuit element To, the feeding is stopped to perform transmission/reception of information. Through the transmission/reception of information, the sequential-order information stored in the RFID circuit element To is read, and the value Q of the remaining number of RFID circuit elements To in the cartridge 7 is computed. After the feeding is further continued and then stopped at the rear half-cut position to form the rear half-cut line HC2, printing (margin printing) of the suitable information R1 is performed.
  • step S2200 or step S2250 has been finished as described above, the process transfers to step S45. Since steps S45 to S60 are the same as described above, description thereof is omitted.
  • step S60 the RFID label T is fed toward the label discharge port 11, and when the RFID label T is discharged to the outside of the tag-label producing device 1' from the label discharge port 11, the process then transfers to step S2065.
  • step S2075 on the basis of the detection signal from the open/close sensor 130, it is determined whether or not the cover 3 of the label producing device 1' has opened, and until the opening of the cover 3 is detected, it is regarded that the operator has not finished the production of the tag label T, and the process returns to step S2001 to repeat the same procedure.
  • step S2075 in case it is determined in step S2075 that the open/close sensor 130 has detected the opening of the cover 3, it is regarded that the operator has finished the production of the tag label and opened the cover 3, so the value of the remaining-number information for the RFID circuit elements To stored in the remaining-number memory 117F is reset to 0 in step S2080, and this flow is ended.
  • Fig. 66 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step S2200 described above.
  • step S2205 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the communication position with the loop antenna LC described above (in other words, whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has substantially reached the position as set in step S125 mentioned above where the loop antenna LC substantially directly faces the position of the RFID circuit element To).
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed by, as step 20 described above, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above.
  • the determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the communication position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the communication position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S2210.
  • step S2210 as in step S25 mentioned above, the rotations of the tape feed roller 27, ribbon take-up roller 106, and drive roller 51 are stopped, and feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped in the state with the loop antenna LC substantially directly facing the RFID circuit element To. Further, the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to thereby stop (interrupt) the printing of the above-mentioned label print R (see Fig. 59F ).
  • step S400 in the same manner as in Fig. 34 described above, transmission/reception of information is performed via wireless communication between the antenna LC and the RFID circuit element To, thereby performing information transmission/reception processing of writing the information created in step S115 mentioned above to the IC circuit part 151 of the RFID circuit element To (or reading information previously stored in the IC circuit part).
  • step S2220 in the same manner as in step S35 of Fig. 65 , the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51 are rotationally driven to resume the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print, and the print head 23 is energized to resume the printing of the label print R.
  • step S2225 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described printing end position (calculated in step S130 mentioned above).
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed by, for example, detecting by a predetermined known method the distance by which the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed after the detection of the identifier PM of the base tape 101 in step S10 mentioned above. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the printing end position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the printing end position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S2230.
  • step S2230 as in step S25 of Fig. 65 mentioned above, the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to stop the printing of the above-mentioned label print R. This completes the printing of the label print R with respect to the print area S (see Fig. 59H ).
  • step S2500 rear half-cut processing, in which the formation of the rear half-cut line HC2 is performed using the half-cutter 34 of the half-cut unit 35 after the tag label tape 109 with print is fed to a predetermined rear half-cut position, is carried out (for details, see Fig. 69 that will be described later).
  • step S2500 the process transfers to step S600.
  • step S600 margin printing processing, in which printing of the above-described suitable information R1 is performed with respect to the front margin area S1 (of the next RFID label T) located on the tape rear end side with respect to the above-mentioned cutting line CL, is executed, and this routine is ended.
  • Fig. 67 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step S2250 described above.
  • step 2255 in the same manner as in step S2225 of Fig. 66 , it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described printing end position (calculated in step S130 mentioned above).
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed in the same manner as in step S2225.
  • the determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the printing end position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the printing end position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S2260.
  • step S2260 in the same manner as in step S2230 of Fig. 66 mentioned above, the energization of the print head 23 is stopped to thereby stop the printing of the above-mentioned label print R. This completes the printing of the label print R with respect to the print area S (see Fig. 62F ).
  • step S2265 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the communication position with the loop antenna LC described above.
  • the determination at this time as well may be performed in the same manner as in step S2205. The determination is not satisfied until the arrival at the communication position and this procedure is repeated, and upon the arrival at the communication position, the determination is satisfied and the process transfers to the next step S2270.
  • step S2270 in the same manner as in step S2210 mentioned above, the rotations of the tape feed roller 27, ribbon take-up roller 106, and drive roller 51 are stopped, and feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print is stopped in the state with the loop antenna LC substantially directly facing the RFID circuit element To (see Fig. 62G ).
  • Step S400 thereafter is the same as that of Fig. 66 , and information transmission/reception processing of performing transmission/reception of information via wireless communication between the antenna LC and the RFID circuit element To is carried out.
  • step S400 Once the transmission/reception of information has been finished in step S400 mentioned above, the process transfers to step S2280.
  • step S2280 as in step S2220 of Fig. 66 , the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51 are rotationally driven to resume the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print (see Fig. 62H ).
  • step S2500 thereafter is the same as that of Fig. 66 , the description thereof is omitted.
  • step S600 it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described margin printing start position.
  • step S640 the printing of the suitable information R1 is started (see Fig. 59J or 62J ). Thereafter, the process transfers to step S660, and it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described margin printing end position.
  • step S680 the printing of the above-mentioned suitable information R1 is stopped. The printing of the suitable information R1 with respect to the front margin area S1 is thus completed, and this routine is ended.
  • Fig. 68 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of the sequential-order information reading processing of step S2300 described above with reference to Figs. 66 and 67 .
  • a control signal is output to the above-described transmitting circuit 306 (see Fig. 57 or the like) via the input/output interface 113, and as the "Scroll All ID" signal for reading out the sequential-order information as number-count-related information stored in the RFID circuit element To, a carrier wave on which predetermined modulation has been performed is transmitted via the loop antenna LC to the RFID circuit element To from which information is to be read, thus urging a reply.
  • step S2320 a reply signal (including the sequential-order information as number-count-related information) that is transmitted from the RFID circuit element To, from which information is to be read, in response to the above-mentioned "Scroll All ID" signal is received via the antenna LC, and taken in via the receiving circuit 307 and the input/output interface 113.
  • step S2330 the presence/absence of an error in the reply signal received in step S2320 mentioned above is determined using a known error detection code (CRC code: Cyclic Redundancy Check or the like).
  • CRC code Cyclic Redundancy Check or the like
  • step S2350 on the basis of the sequential-order information read in step S2320 mentioned above, the number Q of the RFID circuit elements To remaining in the cartridge 7 is computed, and the value Q is set as the remaining-number information. Then, in correspondence with the subtraction performed in step S2065 mentioned above, Q + 1 as a value with 1 added to the above-mentioned value Q is stored into the remaining-number memory 117F as the remaining-number information to be stored, thereby completing this routine.
  • Fig. 69 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step S2500 described above with reference to Figs. 66 and 67 .
  • step S520 in the same manner as in step S20 described above, it is determined whether or not the tag label tape 109 with print has been fed to the above-described rear half-cut position. In case the determination is satisfied, the process transfers to the next step S530 where the drives of the feed motor 119 and tape discharging motor 65 are stopped, thus stopping the rotations of the tape feed roller 27, ribbon take-up roller 106, and drive roller 51.
  • step S540 a control signal is output to the half-cutter motor drive circuit 128 to pivot the half-cutter 34, thereby performing rear half-cutting processing of cutting the cover film 103, adhesive layer 101a, base film 101b, and adhesive layer 101c of the tag label tape 109 with print to form the rear half-cut line HC2 (see Fig. 59I or 62I ).
  • step S550 the process transfers to step S550 where, in the same manner as in step S35 mentioned above, the tape feed roller 27, the ribbon take-up roller 106, and the drive roller 51 are rotationally driven to resume the feeding of the tag label tape 109 with print, and this routine is ended.
  • the cartridge 7 that can supply the base tape 101 equipped with the RFID circuit element To, which has the IC circuit part 151 for storing information, is loaded onto the holder 6 of the main body 2, the base tape 101 supplied from the cartridge 7 is fed by means of the tape feed roller 27, and transmission/reception of information is performed via wireless communication by means of the antenna LC with respect to the RFID circuit element To equipped in the base tape 101, thereby forming the RFID label T.
  • step S2300 included in step S2200 or S2250 in Fig. 65 information on the sequential order (on the base tape 101) of an RFID circuit element To relating to the above-mentioned first RFID label T, which information is stored in the IC circuit part 151 of that RFID circuit element To, is read in step S2320.
  • step S2350 the remaining number of RFID circuit elements To remaining in the cartridge 7 is computed in step S2350, and after Q + 1 as a value with 1 added to the value Q of the remaining number is stored as remaining-number information into the remaining-number memory 117F of the control circuit 110 (step S2350), the value Q (the number of RFID circuit elements remaining in the cartridge 7) decreased by 1 from this value in step S2065 is output to and displayed on the remaining-number display portion 9 in step S2070.
  • step S2075 the process returns from step S2075 to step S2001, and the production of the RFID label T is continued.
  • steps S400 to S600 are executed after step S2215 (without passing through the sequential-order information reading processing of step S2300), and when the label production is finished and the label is discharged, in response to this, in step S2065, the above-mentioned value Q is further decreased by 1 and displayed on the remaining-number display portion 9 in step S2070.
  • the value decreased by 1 in step S2065 each time one RFID label T is produced is displayed on the remaining-number display portion 9 in step S2070.
  • sequential-order information as number-count-related information is stored in the RFID circuit element To that is equipped to the base tape 101 from the beginning, and by using this sequential-order information stored in the first RFID circuit element To immediately after the start of label production, the remaining-number information for the succeeding RFID circuit elements To is acquired. Accordingly, as compared with the case where another separate storage portion for the acquisition of remaining-number information is provided to the cartridge 7, there is no fear of new components being added or the construction of the cartridge 7 becoming more complicated.
  • step S2320 after sequential-order information is acquired in step S2320 from the first RFID circuit element To, and the remaining number of RFID circuit elements To is computed and stored into the remaining-number memory 117F, rather than performing the sequential-order information reading processing of step S2300, the value stored in the remaining-number memory 117F is simply decreased by 1 each time the label production is completed.
  • the sequential-order information since it is unnecessary to read the sequential-order information from the IC circuit part 151 again, as compared with the case where the sequential-order information is acquired from the IC circuit part 151 each time one tag label T is produced, unnecessary wireless communication procedure can be omitted. As a result, the time required for the label production is reduced, thereby making it possible to enhance the efficiency of production processing.
  • the initialization of the value Q may be performed upon satisfying at least one of the following conditions: the cartridge 7 has been detached from the holder 6 (or such detachment has been detected); and the device power supply button 14 has been turned on or off.
  • step S2065 since remaining-number information is used as number-count information, in step S2065, the value Q of the remaining-number information is decreased by 1 to Q - 1 each time the production of one RFID label T is completed.
  • the above-mentioned fourth embodiment and the like may be applied to a system (of a type in which no bonding is performed) in which printing is performed on a print-receiving tape layer equipped to a tag tape consisting of a tape including a thermal layer and an image reception layer, for example.
  • the present invention is not limited to a system in which RFID tag information is read from or written into the IC circuit part 151 of the RFID circuit element To, and in which printing for identifying that RFID circuit element To is performed by the print head 23. This printing may not necessarily be performed, and the above-mentioned fourth embodiment and the like may be applied to a system in which only reading or writing of RFID tag information is performed. Further, the present invention is not limited to a system in which the writing/reading of RFID tag information is performed while stopping the base tape 101 or the like at a predetermined position; the above-mentioned printing or reading/writing may be performed with respect to the base tape 101 that is being moved (further, this may be performed with respect to the base tape 101 that is being retained by a predetermined feeding guide).
  • the present invention is also applicable to the case where the RFID label T is produced by reading RFID tag information from a read-only RFID circuit element To in which predetermined RFID tag information is previously stored and retained in a non-rewritable manner, and performing printing corresponding to the read information. In this case as well, the same effect as mentioned above can be attained.
  • transmission/reception of information is performed by magnetic induction (electromagnetic induction, magnetic coupling, and other such non-contact induction method performed via an electromagnetic field).
  • magnetic induction electromagnetically induction, magnetic coupling, and other such non-contact induction method performed via an electromagnetic field.
  • transmission/reception of information may be performed by radio communication by using, as the above-mentioned two antennas, dipole antennas, patch antennas, or the like as the communication device.
  • half-cut unit 35 is provided separately from the cutting mechanism 15, this should not be construed restrictively. That is, for example, half-cutting may be performed by controlling the pivot angle of the stationary blade 41 of the cutting mechanism 15 to be smaller than that at the time of full-cutting. The same effect as mentioned above can be attained in this case as well.
  • label backing sheets that are divided into predetermined sizes corresponding to individual labels in advance are continuously arranged on the tape paid out from the roll
  • only the label backing sheets (which are each equipped with the RFID circuit element To to which access has been made, and on which corresponding printing has been made) may be peeled off from the tape after the tape is discharged from the discharge port 11 to thereby produce the tag labels T without performing cutting by the cutter 15, and the present invention is also applicable to a tag-label producing device of this type.
  • other conceivable structures include one in which the above-mentioned roll is detachably mounted onto the tag-label producing device 1, 1' side directly, and one in which long flat or rectangular tapes or sheets are transferred by a predetermined feeder mechanism one by one from the outside of the tag-label producing device 1, 1' into the tag-label producing device 1, 1'.
  • the present invention is not limited to the one that can be detachably mounted to the tag-label producing device 1, 1' main body side such as the cartridge 7, either; the first roll 102 may be provided as an installed or integral type one that is undetachably mounted on the main body side. In this case as well, the same effect as mentioned above can be attained.
  • EPC global is a non-profit corporation jointly founded by the international EAN association, which is an international association of distribution codes, and the Uniformed Code Council (UCC), which is a distribution code association of the United States. It should be noted that signals that conform to other standards may be used as long as they serve the same function.

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Claims (9)

  1. Eine ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1), umfassend:
    ein Kommunikationsmittel (LC), welches eine Übertragung/einen Empfang von Informationen auf kontaktfreie Weise in Bezug auf ein RFID-Schaltkreiselement (To), das in einem Etikettenmedium (101, 101', 101", 109, 109', 109"; 101) mit dem darin angeordneten RFID-Schaltkreiselement (To) vorgesehen ist, durchführt, wobei das RFID-Schaltkreiselement (To) ein IC-Schaltkreisteil (151) zum Speichern von Informationen und eine Antenne (152) zum Durchführen der Übertragung/des Empfangs von Informationen aufweist;
    ein Relativbewegungsmittel (108), das eine Relativbewegung zwischen dem Kommunikationsmittel (LC) und dem Etikettenmedium (101, 101', 101", 109, 109', 109"; 101) bewirkt;
    ein Verarbeitungsmittel (S40, S42, S41: S320) für Bezugsinformationen, das auf Grundlage der Relativbewegung eine vorbestimmte Verarbeitung durchführt, die sich auf Informationen hinsichtlich der Etikettenmediumsbewegung bezieht, die durch das Relativbewegungsmittel (108) bewirkt wird;
    ein Steuersignalausgabemittel (S200, S300; S70), welches ein Steuersignal entsprechend einem Ergebnis der Verarbeitung durch das Verarbeitungsmittel für Bezugsinformationen ausgibt; wobei
    die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) ferner eine Aufnahmeelement-Installationshalterung (6) umfaßt, die entfernbar ein Etikettenmediums-Aufnahmeelement (7) installiert, von welchem das Etikettenmedium (101) zugeführt werden kann;
    das Relativbewegungsmittel (108) ein Vorschubmittel (108) ist, welches das Etikettenmedium (101) vorschiebt, das von dem Etikettenmediums-Aufnahmeelement (7) zugeführt wird;
    die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) ein Etikettenlabel (T) unter Verwendung des Etikettenmediums (101) herstellt, für welches die vorbestimmte Übertragung/der vorbestimmte Empfang von Informationen in Bezug auf das RFID-Schaltkreiselement (To) durchgeführt wurde;
    dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass:
    das Verarbeitungsmittel für Bezugsinformationen ein Informationserfassungsmittel (S320) ist, welches als vorbestimmte Verarbeitung, die sich auf Informationen hinsichtlich der Etikettenmediumsbewegung bezieht, anzahlbezogene Informationen in Bezug auf die Anzahl der RFID-Schaltkreiselemente (To) in dem Etikettenmediums-Aufnahmeelement (7) über das Kommunikationsmittel (LC) erfaßt, wobei die anzahlbezogenen Informationen in dem IC-Schaltkreisteil (151) des RFID-Schaltkreiselements (To) gespeichert werden;
    die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) ferner ein Speichermittel (117F) umfaßt, welches auf Grundlage der anzahlbezogenen Informationen, die durch das Informationserfassungsmittel (S320) erfaßt wurden, die entsprechenden Anzahlinformationen auf überschreibbare Weise speichert; und
    das Steuersignalausgabemittel ein Anzeigesteuersignalausgabemittel (S70) ist, welches ein Anzeigesteuersignal zum Anzeigen der Anzahlinformationen, die in dem Speichermittel (117F) gespeichert sind, ausgibt.
  2. Die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) gemäß Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass:
    die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) ferner ein Aktualisierungsverarbeitungsmittel (S65) umfaßt, welches einen Wert der Anzahlinformationen jedes Mal um den Wert 1 erhöht oder erniedrigt, welcher in dem Speichermittel (117F) gespeichert ist, wenn die Herstellung eines der Etikettenlabel abgeschlossen ist.
  3. Die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) gemäß Anspruch 2, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass:
    die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) ferner ein zweites koordinierendes Steuermittel umfaßt, das nach dem Speichern der Anzahlinformationen in dem Speichermittel (117F) auf Grundlage der anzahlbezogenen Informationen, die durch das Informationserfassungsmittel (S320) erfaßt wurden, in koordinierter Weise das Vorschubmittel (108), das Kommunikationsmittel (LC) und das Informationserfassungsmittel (S320) steuert, um die Etikettenlabelherstellung ohne die Erfassung der anzahlbezogenen Informationen durch das Informationserfassungsmittel (S320) durchzuführen.
  4. Die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) gemäß Anspruch 2 oder 3, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass:
    das Anzeigesteuersignalausgabemittel (S70) ein Anzeigesteuersignal zum Anzeigen eines Werts der anzahlbezogenen Informationen, die durch das Aktualisierungsverarbeitungsmittel (S65) aktualisiert wurden, erzeugt und ausgibt.
  5. Die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) gemäß einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 4, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass:
    die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) ferner ein Initialisierungsverarbeitungsmittel (S80) umfaßt, welches zu einem vorbestimmten Zeitpunkt nach der Herstellung des Etikettenlabels (T) einen Wert der anzahlbezogenen Informationen initialisiert, die in dem Speichermittel (117F) zu dieser Zeit gespeichert sind.
  6. Die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) gemäß Anspruch 5, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass:
    das Initialisierungsverarbeitungsmittel (S80) eine Initialisierung der Anzahlinformationen durchführt, wenn als vorbestimmter Zeitpunkt wenigstens eine der folgenden Bedingungen zutrifft:
    das Etikettenmediums-Aufnahmeelement (7) wurde aus der Aufnahmeelement-Installationshalterung (6) entfernt;
    eine Abdeckung (3), die die Aufnahmeelement-Installationshalterung (6) abdeckt, wurde geöffnet; und
    eine Leistungsversorgung der Vorrichtung wurde ein- oder ausgeschaltet.
  7. Die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) gemäß einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 6, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass:
    die Aufnahmeelement-Installationshalterung (6) eine Kartuschenhalterung (6) ist, auf welcher eine RFID-Schaltkreiselement-Kartusche (7) als das Etikettenmediums-Aufnahmeelement, das eine Etikettenbandwalze (102) aufnimmt, wieder entfernbar angebracht wird, wobei die Etikettenbandrolle (102) darauf gewunden ein Etikettenband (101) als Etikettenmedium besitzt, in welchem eine Vielzahl von RFID-Schaltkreiselementen (To) eins nach dem anderen angeordnet sind.
  8. Die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) gemäß Anspruch 7, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass:
    die Kartuschenhalterung (6) es der RFID-Schaltkreiselement-Kartusche (7) vom laminierten Typ ermöglicht, als die RFID-Schaltkreiselement-Kartusche (7) in die Kartuschenhalterung (6) eingesetzt und wieder entfernt zu werden, wobei die RFID-Schaltkreiselement-Kartusche (7) vom laminierten Typ die Etikettenbandwalze (102) und eine Druckaufnahmeband-Walze (104), um welche ein Druckaufnahmeband (103) gewunden ist, welches an dem Etikettenband (101) anzukleben ist, aufnimmt;
    das Vorschubmittel (108) das Etikettenband (101) und das Druckaufnahmeband (103) vorschiebt; und
    die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) ferner ein Druckmittel (23) aufweist, das ein vorbestimmtes Drucken auf dem Druckaufnahmeband (103) durchführt.
  9. Die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) gemäß Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass:
    die ein Etikettenlabel herstellende Vorrichtung (1) ferner ein Druckmittel (23) für anzahlbezogene Informationen umfaßt,
    welches ein Drucken auf einer Druckfläche (S) des Etikettenmediums (101) oder eines Druckaufnahmemediums (103), das an dem entsprechenden RFID-Schaltkreiselement (To) anzukleben ist, entsprechend einem Inhalt der Übertragung/des Empfangs von Informationen durchführt, die/der durch das Kommunikationsmittel (LC) bewirkt wurde,
    und welches die anzahlbezogenen Informationen, die durch das Informationserfassungsmittel (S320) erfaßt wurden, auf wenigstens eine leere Fläche (S1) des Etikettenmediums (101) oder des Druckaufnahmemediums (103) druckt, die auf einer Seite am Ende des Etikettenlabels (T) positioniert ist.
EP08000371A 2005-12-20 2006-12-15 Etikettlabel erzeugende Vorrichtung Active EP1921569B1 (de)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP2005366088 2005-12-20
JP2006111246A JP4911342B2 (ja) 2005-12-20 2006-04-13 タグラベル作成装置
JP2006216019A JP2008040897A (ja) 2006-08-08 2006-08-08 タグラベル作成装置
EP06026109A EP1801733B1 (de) 2005-12-20 2006-12-15 Vorrichtung zur Produktion von RFID-Etiketten

Related Parent Applications (2)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP06026109.6 Division 2006-12-15
EP06026109A Division EP1801733B1 (de) 2005-12-20 2006-12-15 Vorrichtung zur Produktion von RFID-Etiketten

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EP1921569A1 EP1921569A1 (de) 2008-05-14
EP1921569B1 true EP1921569B1 (de) 2010-04-21

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EP08000371A Active EP1921569B1 (de) 2005-12-20 2006-12-15 Etikettlabel erzeugende Vorrichtung

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EP (2) EP1801733B1 (de)
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US20070138281A1 (en) 2007-06-21
DE602006007298D1 (de) 2009-07-30
US7475819B2 (en) 2009-01-13
ATE465467T1 (de) 2010-05-15
DE602006013842D1 (de) 2010-06-02
EP1921569A1 (de) 2008-05-14
EP1801733A1 (de) 2007-06-27
EP1801733B1 (de) 2009-06-17
ATE434234T1 (de) 2009-07-15

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